Fat America: Just A Small Number Of IL Residents Exercise Enough

ILLINOIS — Just 22.9 percent of American adults are getting enough exercise, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most of the adults that met these federal guidelines did so through physical activity performed during leisure time as opposed to physical activity performed at work.

The report looked at what percentage of American adults met the 2008 recommended federal guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity between 2010 and 2015. The report noted that leisure-time physical activity and occupational physical activity may not have comparable health benefits. According to the CDC, previous research shows that occupational physical activity can have less-than-positive effects.

In Illinois, adults got slightly more exercise than the average American adult, the report found. According to the CDC, 24.8 percent of adults in Illinois got the recommended amount of exercise between 2010 and 2015. In general, states in the West and the Rocky Mountain region were more likely to be above the national average while states in the Southeast landed in the below-average category.

Men exercised more than women, the report found. Overall, 27.2 percent of adult men got enough exercise while 18.7 percent of adult women met the recommended amount. Both Illinois men and women exercised more than the national average for this demographic. According to the CDC, 28.5 percent of Illinois men and 20.9 percent of Illinois women got the recommended amount of exercise between 2010 and 2015.

Illinois was one of 14 states that had a significantly higher percentage of adults who met the federal guidelines. The percentage of working Illinois men and women getting enough exercise was also above the national average for both sexes.

The Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults perform at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of moderate physical activity every week or 75 minutes (1.5 hours) of vigorous physical activity in addition to muscle strengthening activities two or more days per week.

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