Healthy Living - Working Moderate-intensity Activities into Your Day

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Healthy Living

Working Moderate-intensity Activities into Your Day

Moderate-intensity activities include some of the things you may already be doing during a day or week, such as gardening and housework. These activities can be done in short spurts--10 minutes here, 8 minutes there. Alone, each action does not have a great effect on your health, but regularly accumulating 30 minutes of activity over the course of the day can result in substantial health benefits.

To become more active throughout your day, take advantage of any chance to get up and move around. Here are some examples:

Take a short walk around the block

Rake leaves

Play actively with the kids

Walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator

Mow the lawn

Take an activity break--get up and stretch or walk around

Park your car a little farther away from your destination and walk the extra distance

The point is not to make physical activity an unwelcome chore, but to make the most of the opportunities you have to be active.