The amount of physical activity you need to do each week is determined by your age. To stay healthy or to improve health, young people need to do three types of physical activity each week: aerobic, muscle-strengthening and bone-strengthening activity.

Click on the links below for the recommendations for other age groups:

  1. Under 5 Years
  2. 5-18 Years
  3. 19-65 Years
  4. Above 65 Years

UNDER 5 YEARS

For this age group, activity of any intensity should be encouraged, including light activity and more activity. Being physically active every day is important for the healthy growth and development of babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers. Less time spent in front of TV and travelling and some kind of physical activity in the garden and park is best.

5-18 YEARS

Physical activity for young people aged 5-18

To maintain a basic level of health, children and young people aged 5-18 need to do:

At least 60 minutes (1 hour) of physical activity every day, which should be a mixture of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, such as fast walking, and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, like running.

Three days in a week, these activities should involve muscle-strengthening activities, such as push-ups, and bone-strengthening activities, such as running. Many vigorous-intensity aerobic activities can help you meet your weekly muscle- and bone strengthening requirements, such as running, football, skipping etc.

What counts as moderate-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require moderate effort for most young people include:

  1. Football
  2. skateboarding
  3. rollerblading
  4. walking the dog
  5. riding a bike on level ground or ground with few hills

Moderate-intensity aerobic activity means you're working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break a sweat. One way to tell if you're working at a moderate intensity is if you can still talk but you can't sing the words to a song.

What counts as vigorous-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require vigorous effort for most young people include:

  1. playing chase
  2. energetic dancing
  3. aerobics
  4. running
  5. gymnastics
  6. playing football
  7. martial arts, such as karate
  8. riding a bike fast or on hilly ground

Vigorous-intensity aerobic activity means you're breathing hard and fast, and your heart rate has gone up quite a bit. If you're working at this level, you won't be able to say more than a few words without pausing for a breath.

What counts as bone-strengthening activity?

Bone-strengthening activities produce an impact or tension force on the bones that promotes bone growth and strength.

Examples of bone-strengthening activities suitable for children include:

  1. activities that require children to lift their body weight or to work against a resistance
  2. jumping and climbing activities, combined with the use of playground equipment and toys
  3. games such as hopscotch
  4. skipping with a rope
  5. walking
  6. running
  7. sports such as gymnastics, football, basketball and tennis
  8. martial arts

Examples of bone-strengthening activities suitable for young people include:

  1. dance
  2. aerobics
  3. weight-training
  4. water-based activities
  5. running
  6. sports such as gymnastics, football, netball, hockey, badminton and tennis
  7. skipping with a rope
  8. martial arts

Children and young people should take part in activities that are appropriate for their age and stage of development.

What counts as muscle-strengthening activity?

Overweight Individuals

  1. Children and young people who are overweight can improve their health by meeting the activity guidelines, even if they don’t lose weight.
  2. To reach a healthy weight, they may need to do more than the recommended 60 minutes of activity a day and also make changes to their diet.

For young people, muscle-strengthening activities are those that require them to lift their own body weight or to work against a resistance, such as climbing a rope.

Examples of muscle-strengthening activities suitable for children include:

  1. games such as tug of war
  2. swinging on playground equipment bars
  3. gymnastics
  4. rope or tree climbing
  5. sit-ups
  6. sports such as gymnastics, football, basketball and tennis

Examples of muscle-strengthening activities suitable for young people include:

  1. sit-ups
  2. push-ups
  3. gymnastics
  4. resistance exercises with exercise bands, weight machines or hand-held weights
  5. rock climbing
  6. sports such as football, basketball and tennis

Children and young people should take part in activities that are appropriate for their age and stage of development.

19-64 YEARS

To stay healthy, adults aged 19-64 should try to be active daily and should do:

At least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity such as cycling or fast walking every week, and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a
          week that work all major muscle groups (legs,
          hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

          OR

75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity such as running or a game of singles tennis every week, and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a
          week that work all major muscle groups (legs,
          hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

          OR

An equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity every week (for example 2 30-minute runs plus 30 minutes of fast walking), and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

What counts as moderate-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require moderate effort for most people include:

  1. walking fast
  2. water aerobics
  3. riding a bike on level ground or with few hills
  4. doubles tennis
  5. pushing a lawn mower
  6. hiking
  7. skateboarding
  8. rollerblading
  9. volleyball
  10. basketball

5 x 30 minutes
One way to do your recommended 150 minutes of weekly physical activity is to do 30 minutes on 5 days a week.

Moderate-intensity activity will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster and feel warmer. One way to tell if you're working at a moderate intensity is if you can still talk, but you can't sing the words to a song.

What counts as vigorous-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require vigorous effort for most people include:

  1. jogging or running
  2. swimming fast
  3. riding a bike fast or on hills
  4. singles tennis
  5. football
  6. rugby
  7. skipping rope
  8. hockey
  9. aerobics
  10. gymnastics
  11. martial arts

Vigorous-intensity aerobic activity means you're breathing hard and fast, and your heart rate has gone up quite a bit. If you're working at this level, you won't be able to say more than a few words without pausing for a breath.

In general, 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity can give similar health benefits to 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity.

What counts as muscle-strengthening activity?

Muscle-strengthening exercises are counted in repetitions and sets. A repetition is 1 complete movement of an activity, like lifting a weight or doing a sit-up. A set is a group of repetitions.

For each activity, try to do 8 to 12 repetitions in each set. Try to do at least 1 set of each muscle-strengthening activity. You'll get even more benefits if you do 2 or 3 sets.

Overweight Individual

  1. Adults who are overweight can improve their health by meeting the activity guidelines, even if they don’t lose weight.
  2. To lose weight, you are likely to need to do more than 150 minutes a week and make changes to your diet.
  3. Start by gradually building up towards 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week.

To get health benefits from muscle-strengthening activities, you should do them to the point where you struggle to complete another repetition.

There are many ways you can strengthen your muscles, whether it's at home or in the gym. Examples of muscle-strengthening activities for most people include:

  1. lifting weights
  2. working with resistance bands
  3. doing exercises that use your body weight for resistance, such as push-ups and sit-ups
  4. heavy gardening, such as digging and shovelling
  5. yoga

Try Strength and Flex, a five-week exercise plan for beginners to improve your strength and flexibility.
You can do activities that strengthen your muscles on the same day or on different days as your aerobic activity, whatever's best for you.
However, muscle-strengthening activities don't count towards your aerobic activity total, so you'll need to do them in addition to your aerobic activity.

Some vigorous-intensity aerobic activities may provide 75 minutes of aerobic activity and sufficient muscle-strengthening activity. Examples include circuit training and sports such as football or rugby.

Physical activity for older adults aged 65 and over

Older adults aged 65 or older, who are generally fit and have no health conditions that limit their mobility, should try to be active daily and should do:

At least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity such as cycling or fast walking every week, and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

          OR

75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity such as running or a game of singles tennis every week, and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a
          week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips,
          back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

          OR

An equivalent mix of moderate and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity every week (for example two 30-minute runs plus 30 minutes of fast walking), and
          muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).

What counts as moderate-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require moderate effort for most people include:

  1. walking fast
  2. doing water aerobics
  3. ballroom and line dancing
  4. riding a bike on level ground or with few hills
  5. playing doubles tennis
  6. pushing a lawn mower
  7. canoeing
  8. volleyball

Every little helps

Inactive people get more immediate health benefits from being active again than people who are already fit. Some activity is better than none at all.

Moderate-intensity activity will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster and feel warmer. One way to tell if you're exercising at a moderate intensity is if you can still talk but you can't sing the words to a song.

Daily activities such as shopping, cooking or housework count towards your 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity.

It is also important to minimise the amount of time you spend sitting watching TV, reading or listening to music. Some activity, however light, is better for your health than none at all.

What counts as vigorous-intensity aerobic activity?

Examples of activities that require vigorous effort for most people include:

  1. jogging or running
  2. aerobics
  3. swimming fast
  4. riding a bike fast or on hills
  5. playing singles tennis
  6. playing football
  7. hiking uphill
  8. energetic dancing
  9. martial arts

Vigorous-intensity aerobic activity means you're breathing hard and fast, and your heart rate has gone up quite a bit. If you're working at this level, you won't be able to say more than a few words without pausing for a breath.

In general, 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity can give similar health benefits to 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity.

What counts as muscle-strengthening activity?

Muscle-strengthening exercises are counted in repetitions and sets. A repetition is one complete movement of an activity, like lifting a weight or doing a sit-up. A set is a group of repetitions.

For each activity, try to do 8 to 12 repetitions in each set. Try to do at least 1 set of each muscle-strengthening activity. You'll get even more benefits if you do 2 or 3 sets.

Preventing falls

Older adults at risk of falls, such as people with weak legs, poor balance and some medical conditions, should do exercises to improve balance and co-ordination on at least two days a week. These could include yoga, tai chi and dancing.

To gain health benefits from muscle-strengthening activities, you should do them to the point where you find it hard to complete another repetition.

There are many ways you can strengthen your muscles, whether at home or in the gym. Examples of muscle-strengthening activities include:

  1. carrying or moving heavy loads such as groceries
  2. activities that involve stepping and jumping such as dancing
  3. heavy gardening, such as digging or shovelling
  4. exercises that use your body weight for resistance, such as push-ups or sit-ups
  5. yoga
  6. lifting weights

You can do activities that strengthen your muscles on the same day or on different days as your aerobic activity, whatever's best for you.

However, muscle-strengthening activities don't count towards your aerobic activity total, so you'll need to do them in addition to your aerobic activity.

Some vigorous-intensity aerobic activities may provide 75 minutes of aerobic activity and sufficient muscle-strengthening activity. Examples include circuit training and sports such as aerobic dancing or running.