Wellbeing
You’ve got to ‘move it, move it’ weekly
TRISTAN HALL plans to get us all moving more by breaking down our activity planning.
In our previous article, we touched on the pillars of health: activity, nutrition, sleep and environment.
This month, we will provide four focus points for our first pillar: activity.
We will focus on the FITT principle (frequency of activity, intensity, type of exercise and time).
World Health Organization recommendations for exercise encourage us to engage in 150–300 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75–150 minutes of vigorous activity weekly.
How can we break this down into more applicable variables?
Frequency: four to six bouts of exercise per week with a day of rest in a seven-day cycle.
Intensity: for resistance exercises, a moderate intensity that builds power, strength and endurance is optimal. Incidental and aerobic exercises should be of lower intensity to enhance cardiovascular, respiratory, metabolic and cognitive health without overexertion.
Type: ideally, this includes two to three weekly sessions of resistance training, two sessions of aerobic exercise, and one to two sessions of lower-intensity incidental activity.
Time/duration: resistance exercises should last 30-60 minutes with adequate recovery, while aerobic sessions should be longer: around 40-90 minutes.
So, what does this all actually mean?
In order to follow a healthy, achievable and scientific-based exercise routine, the following could be applied:
- Find something you like doing. Use this as your aerobic/incidental exercise.
- Aim for two to three times a week of resistance training for 30-60 minutes at moderate intensity.
- Aim for aerobic exercise two times a week for 40-plus minutes in duration at a low intensity.
Research has shown that, overwhelmingly, the reason individuals do not reach their exercise goals is planning, with frequency being the second variable.
Hopefully, this article can give you some guidance in regards to planning.
If these topics have piqued your interest or you would simply like to ask general questions, feel free to reach our friendly team on 5456 1599.
Tristan Hall is an exercise physiologist at Full Circle Wellness. Call 0431 192 284 or visit fullcirclewellness.com.au
