Benefits of 30 Minutes of Physical Activity a Day
Moving, exercising, and staying active is incredibly important, you surely knew that already. A lot of people, especially those immersed in the world of sports and training, always talk about how essential it is to keep the body moving. And they’ve plenty of reasons to believe this! Doing 30 minutes of physical activity a day can bring great benefits.
For those dedicated to this lifestyle, getting 30 minutes of physical activity a day can be positive for many reasons. No wonder why so many individuals consider it the link of good habits and a healthy lifestyle. Let’s expand on this a bit more.
What kind of physical activity can you do?
A person’s daily activity can be divided into physical activity, physical exercise, or sport. No matter what they choose to do, the primary objective is doing it for a minimum of 30 minutes a day.
At the end of the day, all three options focus on body movements. The main difference between these alternatives is that physical activity includes any movement that requires energy expenditure, whereas exercise is scheduled and structured physical activity, and sport refers to a regulated physical activity.
Some of the more popular options to perform include dancing, riding a bike, walking, and swimming. Of course, there are many more alternatives, such as practicing your favorite sport. The important thing is to avoid sedentarism.
Thirty minutes of physical activity a day, what are the benefits?
You don’t need to focus on exercise or sports to feel like you’re carrying out daily physical activity. Undoubtedly, they’re excellent alternatives. However, many people use them as an excuse not to do them. For example, they argue that exercise or sports are expensive because of the clothes they require or gym membership fees.
However, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that it’s enough to do 30 minutes of physical activity for five days to improve a person’s health condition.
In fact, it establishes that said 30 minutes of physical activity can accumulate throughout the day. This means that can be achieved even doing everyday activities. Up next, we’ll be talking about the most recognized benefits of this practice:
Fights a sedentary lifestyle
When we talk about a sedentary lifestyle, we refer to the absence of physical activity and no energy expenditure. Moreover, it exists at various levels and can cause the body to suffer from harmful diseases.
Luckily, doing 30 minutes of physical activity a day helps to avoid any type of sedentary lifestyle. This explains why many people believe this practice is key to achieve a healthy life.
Prevent non-communicable diseases
One of the main triggers of non-communicable diseases is a sedentary lifestyle. By doing 30 minutes of physical activity a day, the chances of them appearing decrease significantly.
In fact, according to the WHO, non-communicable diseases represent the most important cause of death in the world, accounting for 63 percent of the total number of annual deaths.
Among them are cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, and respiratory diseases. We must note that, apart from a sedentary lifestyle, there are other factors that influence these types of conditions. Nonetheless, doing regular physical activity contributes to their prevention.
Strengthens the body
Performing 30 minutes of physical activity a day will make the muscles become stronger over time. The muscle tone is greatly benefited. However, other segments such as tendons and bones also profit from it.
This improvement in physical capacities increases according to the intensity of the activity. In any case, starting off with moderate exercise is a good alternative.
Improves life expectancy
By gradually improving the quality of life, doing 30 minutes of physical activity a day also increases life expectancy. No matter how old you are, in terms of health, regular physical activity can increase your chances of living up to five more years.
In addition to the above, if you’re an older adult, your whole body can gain more strength which, as a result, will keep you from depending on medicine to be healthy. It’s never too late to start getting your body moving.
Do you already do 30 minutes of physical activity a day?
Performing 30 minutes of physical activity a day is much easier than it seems. Now that you know all the benefits this practice brings, we encourage you to make it part of your routine.
In case you have any doubts, you can consult with your general practitioner about what you can or can’t do regarding physical activity and its intensity. Always keep in mind that your health is in your hands!
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Organización Mundial de la Salud. (2010). Recomendaciones Mundiales sobre Actividad Física para la Salud. Geneva: WHO Library Cataloguing-in-Publication.
- Organizacion Mundial de la Salud (OMS). (2013). OMS | La actividad física en los adultos. In Oms.
- Obesidad y sedentarismo en el siglo XXI: ¿qué se puede y se debe hacer? (2013). Obesidad y Sedentarismo En El Siglo XXI: ¿qué Se Puede y Se Debe Hacer? https://doi.org/10.3305/nh.2013.28.sup5.6869
- Organización Mundial de la Salud. (2014). OMS | Las 10 causas principales de defunción en el mundo. In 310. https://doi.org//entity/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/es/index.html
