By Gabe Sanders Ph.D., NSCA-CSCS
So often, medical experts and media outlets publicize the minimum exercise you can do to be healthy. While I understand it is important to tell the narrative that some exercise is better than none, it does not really provide the best advice for optimal health. Most people, want to be very healthy, not moderately healthy or minimally healthy. If the goal is optimal health, why aren’t exercise and health professionals screaming from the rooftops for people to exercise more!
Exercise More!!!!
For example, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends 150 minutes of moderately intense activity every week. This equates to 30 minutes of cardiorespiratory exercise five days per week, which is not a lot. Yes, this amount of exercise can help you, but will it optimize your health?
The answer is no, it will not!
It will help, but not optimize. In fact, that amount of exercise would not be enough to improve the fitness level of a young, adolescent child, let alone optimize an adult’s health. So the goal is to start rethinking optimal exercise time and intensity as you aim for optimal health.
First, being physically active throughout the day is key. Avoid sitting for long periods of time, move and be active. Then focus your efforts on completing 60 minutes of aerobic exercise every day of the week, not just five days, and mix in higher and lower intensity days to avoid muscular overuse. You should also mix in different forms of aerobic exercise such as jogging, rowing, bicycling, and the elliptical. A nice mix of aerobic exercise can improve muscular function, fitness and optimize health.
A person can approximate 100 calories expended per 10 minutes of aerobic exercise. The number of calories you would expend doing 150 minutes (5 days x 30 minutes) of exercise per week would equate to 1,500 calories compared to 420 minutes (7 days x 60 minutes) of exercise per week which equates to 4,200 calories. This perspective highlights how you can almost triple your energy expenditure each week which will robustly improve your health.
Before starting an exercise regimen, consult with your physician or healthcare provider
Article’s Sources
Braith, Randy W., and Kerry J. Stewart. “Resistance exercise training: its role in the prevention of cardiovascular disease.” Circulation 113.22 (2006): 2642-2650.
Ozemek, Cemal, et al. “An update on the role of cardiorespiratory fitness, structured exercise and lifestyle physical activity in preventing cardiovascular disease and health risk.” Progress in cardiovascular diseases 61.5-6 (2018): 484-490.
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