No pain, no gain?

You know what they say...... "No pain no gain". We grasp onto it with tight, white knuckled fists, unable to hold our head high unless passing out with breathless, heart-racing glory at the end of circuit class. But on closer inspection, amending the slogan, minimum pain, maximum gain, may still prove correct, at least in the cardiovascular health stakes.

Now, before we go on, I want to be clear that my point is to not to overwhelmed or cause paralysis by mention of the word exercise, but motivate and give you a soft fuzzy feeling deep down. Ok so like you, I don’t have a lot of time to do copious amounts of exercise every day. Even still, the motivation to stay healthy, as well as model healthy lifestyle practices to my daughter, is enough to keep my gym shoes dust free. So the good news for us all is that health benefits can be achieved with moderate physical activity. Ok, so what defines moderate, and what defines intense, and what benefits will you achieve?

The National Heart Foundation of Australia defines moderate exercise as a noticeable increase in the depth and rate of breathing, whilst still being able to maintain a conversation, good news if you want to catch up with a friend whilst exercising!

Vigorous activity, on the other hand is defined as a marked increase in the rate of breathing, such as huffing and puffing. Health benefits can be achieved by doing 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, or 90 minutes of vigorous exercise per week. This level of activity will help decrease cardiovascular risk factors, prevent metabolic syndrome and provide positive mood effects. Other benefits include, better sleep, higher energy levels, and for women, less reproductive health conditions.

The good news is that you can achieve those New Years resolutions by doing moderate physical activity a few times per week and you don’t have to kit yourself out with the latest gym gear if that’s not your thing. Put on some sweats and hit the park, go for a lunchtime walk with your friend, or load up your Ipod with an audio book. This will not only disperse the no pain no gain myth, you may even begin saying minimum pain, maximum gain.