Physical Activity Factsheet

Click on the headings below to read our Physical Activity Factsheet

Why is physical activity important?

Being physical active can help prevent and manage long-term health conditions.

For example, it can reduce joint pain cause by arthritis, ease breathlessness in people with COPD, and delay the progression of osteoarthritis.

It keeps our heart healthy, helps us maintain a healthy weight and improves sleep.

Evidence also shows that being physically active can improve our emotional wellbeing and reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety.

And remember, you don’t need to join a gym to be active. We’ve put together this list of resources to inspire ideas!

Where should I start?

Do a variety of activity

We need a variety of activities to help build and maintain our stamina, our strength, our flexibility and our balance.

Break up sedentary time

A sedentary lifestyle (sitting or lying with low energy expenditure) is detrimental to our health. Inactivity can increase your risk of conditions like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Any movement can break sedentary time, including chair-based exercise.

Make small changes over time

We want physical activity to be part of our daily lives, so doing things like taking the stairs or making sure you take a break every hour to stretch can be really important.

Start now

The sooner you start being physically active the sooner you can see some of the benefits.