What is the Minimum Amount of Exercise That You Really Need?

Everyone knows that exercise is good for them, but many people somehow can’t find the hours of time that they think that they need per week to make it worth the effort.

But how much exercise time do you really need to get a tremendous health boost from that exercise? If everyone realized that it really doesn’t take that much time, maybe many more people would start exercising!

Eighty percent of Americans fail to meet the “official” US government recommended amount of exercise, which is 2.5 hours of moderate-intensity activity or 1.25 hours of vigorous-intensity activity each week, along with twice weekly strength-training workouts.

The US government does not have the last word on fitness. These recommendations have not kept up with the latest scientific studies on fitness.

How much exercise you need depends on a number of factors, not the least of which is the type of activity you do. The more intense you work out, the less frequently you should do it and the shorter the duration should be.

It’s entirely possible to get phenomenal workouts in just a total of an hour or less per week! That breaks down to 20 minutes two or three times a week, if you’re doing, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) or super-slow weight training. But this doesn’t mean you should simply sit around for the rest of the week.

Regular walking (upwards of 7,000 steps a day) is also important, in addition to regular exercise. Even small amounts of exercise matter and any amount of exercise is better than none at all.

If you are sedentary, you should get a complete physical, including an EKG, prior to starting an exercise program. You should also ease into the program in graduated steps and not overdo it!

This link can take you through the basics.

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