The Bare Minimum Amount Of Exercise You Need To Stay Healthy

Judging from the people I follow on Twitter, except for the chick who really likes donuts, they are all health nuts who seem to spend hours on the “elliptical”… I think that’s some torture device in a gym, but don’t quote me on that. Or at the gym. At least that what they say.

But that’s not me. I like exercise when I like it. It makes me feel good, but usually (like everything else about me) when I start it, I go “whole hog” and pretty much burn myself out pretty quick. I get injuries… my immune system gets drained and I get sick… or some other thing to make me go …”Now that was a bad idea!”

But I do like exercise in moderation. I just don’t know how to be moderate about too many things.

So this article was very liberating: The bare minimum amount of exercise you need to stay healthy (it’s less than you think!) It refers to a Reuters story.

So how much (or how little exercise) does it take?

By “what does it take to stay healthy” the authors of the article meant…”prevent type 2 diabetes and control blood sugar”. It helps the body normalize insulin. This isn’t everyone’s definition of peak health, but certainly an important element of overall health in the US.

How much? (little?) 7 minutes of vigorous exercise per week!

The effect of the exercise lasts up to 10 days after the last bout of exercise. They were exercising twice a week with in short 30 second stints to get this effect.

This study didn’t look at the effects on high blood pressure or weight control. But a similar study did show improvements in heart function.

So I’m thinking … why not just try to exercise a few minutes per day.

Even I could do 2 minutes of vigorous exercise per day. And once I get started, even I can go a few minutes longer.

If you have problems exercising… read the article and see if there’s something you can fit into your schedule to get started with a simple program you can stick to!

I’m not much into neck bridges, but I like the Indian Pushups and Squats discussed in Combat Conditioning: Functional Exercises for Fitness and Combat Sports. You can get lots of vigorous exercise doing those two exercises for a few minutes each!