ACSM: You Need 3 Hours & 40 Minutes Of Exercise Per Week | Better ...

Via the Montreal Gazette -

It?s been 13 years since the American College of Sports Medicine issued a statement on how much exercise we should be doing. And according to Carol Ewing Garber, vice-president of the ACSM and assistant professor of movement sciences at Columbia University, the organization?s position needed to be updated and brought in line with other prominent health and fitness agencies.

The 26-page position statement sums up the latest scientific findings and makes a number of recommendations regarding the quality and quantity of exercise needed to achieve a basic level of fitness. The guidelines are meant to help health and fitness professionals develop effective individualized exercise prescriptions for their clientele.

At first glance, the recommendations are daunting: a total of 220 minutes (three hours and 40 minutes) spent exercising over a seven-day period, in the following way:

150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardiovascular exercise (walking, running, cycling, swimming).

Two to three weight-training and functional training workouts (exercises to improve agility, balance and coordination).

Two stretching sessions per week.

Before you gasp at the time investment recommended by the ACSM, Garber says the guidelines aren?t meant to suggest that the average exerciser has to do it all.

?It?s simply a statement of what works,? she said. ?You can do less and still get benefits.?

Finding out how little exercise you actually need to achieve health benefits is one of the most interesting parts of the document. Despite the recommendation of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise per week, the ACSM admits that several studies have noted a reduction in cardiovascular disease and premature mortality starting at about half that exercise volume. And while it should be pointed out that more exercise results in more benefits, including improved fitness, it?s good to know that even a little bit of exercise helps.

Click here for the ACSM?s ?Quantity and Quality of Exercise for Developing and Maintaining Cardiorespiratory, Musculoskeletal, and Neuromotor Fitness in Apparently Healthy Adults: Guidance for Prescribing Exercise.?

I would agree with this recommendation.? About 3 1/2 hours per week, minimum, is what everyone should be doing.

Source: http://betterhealthjournal.com/2011/07/06/acsm-you-need-3-hours-40-minutes-of-exercise-per-week/

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