Heart disease and stroke are leading causes of death in the United States. Getting at least 150 minutes a week of moderate physical activity can lower your risk for these diseases. You can reduce your risk further with even more exercise.

 

Regular physical activity can also lower blood pressure and improve your cholesterol levels. What’s more, it can reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is some combination of too much fat around the waist, high blood pressure, low high-density lipo-protein (HDL) cholesterol, high triglycerides or high blood sugar. With a regular schedule of moderate-intensity physical activity, people see a benefit from even less than 150 minutes a week of such activity. Additional amounts could lower your risk even more.

 

Physical activity may help reduce the risk of serious outcomes from infectious diseases, including COVID-19, the flu and pneumonia. For example:

 

  • People who do little or no physical activity are more likely to get very sick from COVID-19 compared with those who are physically active. In a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) review, physical activity was associated with a decrease in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths; inactivity increases that risk.
  • People who are more active may be less likely to die of the flu or pneumonia. In one study, adults who met the aerobic and muscle-strengthening physical activity guidelines were about half as likely to die of the flu and pneumonia than adults who met neither guideline.
  • Being physically active lowers your risk of developing several common cancers. Plus, if you are a cancer survivor, getting regular exercise improves your physical fitness as well as your quality of life.

 

Adapted from: Physical Activity Basics, CDC.gov