Some jobs and roles in life demand us to do a lot of physical activity, but many do not. And with the rise of computers and smart gadgets, physical activity is becoming less of a thing in many people’s lives, which is not a good thing. Physical activity is important to a healthy body, mind, and spirit, which are important to every facet of your life. In short, physical activity can determine how your life plays out. When it comes to exercise, the recommendation for adults is roughly 20 minutes per day of moderate aerobic activity and strength exercises 2 or more days per week, but it doesn’t hurt to increase this number if you can, and that’s what this challenge is all about.
5 Reasons To Add More Physical Activity Into Your Day
1. Lower Your Risk Of Heart Disease
Studies have shown that just 60 minutes per week of physical activity can cut your chances of getting heart disease in half. By adding just 20 minutes of extra physical activity into your day, you will be doing your heart a favor.
2. Reduce The Risk Of Colon or Breast Cancer
Active people are less likely to get colon cancer by up to 40%, and less likely to get breast cancer by up to 30% when compared to people who are inactive. Both are good reasons to always stay active and work on increasing your physical activity.
3. Be More Productive
Physical activity improves productivity. As little as 10 minutes of physical activity per day can help you improve your productivity in your work and personal life.
Research shows that physical activity improves productivity by improving concentration, learning, creativity, and memory. Moreover, it lowers stress which is a huge deterrence to productivity.
4. Improve Your Mental Health
Studies show that things like depression, anxiety, social well-being, and self-esteem are improved by physical activity. Plus, it feels good to know that you are doing something that is taking are of your body.
It’s a simple, but underestimated law of life: When you do bad things, you feel bad. When you do good things, you feel good.
5. Improve Energy Levels
It’s interesting that something that requires energy can boost energy, but it can. Physical activity can give you more energy to enjoy your family, friends, and extracurricular activities.
Challenge Yourself To Add 20 More Minutes Of Physical Activity Per Day
One of the best ways to add physical activity to your day is to combine it with something else.
For instance, if you must watch what happens on Game of Thrones (and let’s face it, anyone who watches the show isn’t going to miss it), then you can spend 20 minutes on the treadmill or doing step-ups on a stair or step bench as you watch the show. Then, you still have 30+ minutes left in the show to sit. When you look at it that way, adding 20 minutes of physical activity into your day doesn’t seem that hard or time-consuming.
There are plenty of ways to add 20 minutes of physical activity into your day. Choose what works for you.
You can:
- Go for a 20-minute morning, break, lunch, or evening walk.
- Ride a bike to the store instead of driving.
- Get off the bus a few stops early and walk a few blocks.
- Park in the farthest parking spot you can find.
- Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator.
- Dance to your favorite songs while you cook or clean.
- Do a deep clean in one area of your house.
- Buy an exercise video and schedule time to do it every day.
Get A Fitness Tracker
If you lack motivation, then get a fitness tracker. It can give you alerts to get moving and help you see just how much or how little you are doing per day. An extra 20 minutes of activity per day, can get you about 1000-2000 steps per day, depending on how fast you are going and how big your steps are. But, it’s a great way to see how little you are doing and get off your butt and do more.
If you really lack motivation, get a fitness tracker for yourself and a close friend or family member and then hold each other accountable. I have a friend who shares her Fitbit information with her mother of all people. When she doesn’t move too much, her mother will call her up to see if she’s ok and find out why she’s not being active. Talk about motivation!
Note: You can check out FitBit options on Amazon here.
Add Another 20 Minutes Of Physical Activity In Week 2
Want to really challenge yourself? Find another 20 minutes of physical activity per day in your second week.
Add Another 20 Minutes of Physical Activity In Week 3
Take it up another notch and add 20 more minutes per day into week 3. If you can make it to this point, this will give you an extra hour of physical activity per day.
Add Another 20 In Week 4
An extra hour and twenty minutes per day of physical activity will benefit you in all areas of your life. Once you start the habit of being physically active each day, you are going to find it’s addictive because it feels so darn good.
In other words, what’s seems like a hard thing to add to your life now will be much easier in one month from now.
Take it week by week and focus on doing one of the best things you can do for your physical health.
