 Exercise scientist Amelia Phillips - perhaps surprisingly - described those still sedentary for the rest of the day as 'active couch potatoes'. "The sedentary behaviour counterbalanced the exercise," Phillips told Today Extra. "The people that were lightly active with 30 minutes of exercise had much better body fat percentages, blood glucose and cholesterol levels." She said any 'lightly active behaviours' done throughout the day made a huge difference to our health, but more intense exercise was also needed. "It is widely recommended to exercise for 2.5 to five hours a week," she said. "The catch is you need to have vigorous activity on top of moderate which is one to two hours a week." How can I meet these fitness targets in real life? It might not be as hard as you think, and just involves a little imagination. Phillips advises to go for a power walk, before breaking into a jog for 10 to 15){kind=link}
Prepare to be inspired to reach further for your fitness goals after new research shows many of us are merely ‘active couch potatoes’
How often do you exercise a day?
If it’s the much-touted half an hour, you may be disappointed to learn this may not actually be enough to ward off health issues.
New research suggests 30 minutes of daily exercise is too little to make a difference in people deemed ‘active couch potatoes’, reports Today.
A study in Finland monitored 3,700 volunteers split into three groups.