Keys to Better Health: Activity

As has been mentioned in both the Hacks For Beginners page and the Men's Health 101 blog, physical activity is the most basic bio hack you can do to improve your health in mid-life. Exercise can be in many forms, but the key is just being physically active. This is especially important if you are employed in a sedentary job. But even if you have a physically active job, you still need to get enough exercise per week to maintain good health. The U.S. CDC recommends a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate to intensive activity per week. That's about 20-25 minutes per day, so it's not a big time commitment. Some of this can be covered by normal activities, such as walking.

As we age and take on more responsibilities in life, they often take precedence over keeping physically active. This is the mistake I made in my 40's and early 50's. I got caught up in family activities and work, forsaking the need to be purposefully active. As a result I started to gain weight. From age 40 to 54, I gained 30 pounds, or going from a BMI of 25 (normal) to 30 (obese). That was about the time I realized if I didn't increase my activity again, I would be risking cutting my life short. At that time, I started to walk every day. At first it was about 10 minutes and 1/3 mile (0.50 km) per day. Over time I increased that to my current level, which is 35-40 minutes and 1.4 miles per day. I have a step counter app installed on my smartphone. It's currently set to a goal of 5000 steps per day, which equates to about 2 miles or 225 calories burned. That's is twice the recommended number of minutes per day, and it has paid dividends in better physical (and mental) health, lower weight, etc. I also do daily work on a home step climber, and calisthenics. Total time commitment per day is about 50-60 minutes. Bear in mind this is not all at once - I do my indoor exercise at a different time than walking, and sometimes I take multiple walks to add up to the 40 minutes. Also I count my normal non exercise-focused steps as part of the overall step count and walking commitment.

Whatever activities you choose, pick the ones that you like, as long as they get your body moving in some way. My current primary activity is walking, but in the past I was active in other ways. In my 30's I used to play basketball and volleyball after work. I also used to ride a bicycle regularly, and went dancing. Some people like to go the gym or run. In any case, try to get that 150 minutes of activity in per week. The bottom line is, activity is important to better health, especially in mid-life and later. This is a simple bio hack that everyone can do. It's a lifestyle choice that has many benefits. In my opinion, the primary key to overall improved health starts with being active.