In 2017, the Health Council issued new advice on exercise. New national exercise guidelines have been drawn up on this basis. This means that the old national exercise guidelines have been abolished. In general, this new guideline resembles the old and well-known exercise, fitness and combination standard. The recommendation to do muscle and bone strengthening activities, combined with balance exercises for the elderly, is new. And it is explicitly stated that longer, more frequent and/or more intensive exercise provides additional health benefits. In addition, a guideline regarding sitting has been added.
For adults and the elderly, the new exercise guidelines are as follows:
– Exercise is good, more exercise is better.
– Do at least 150 minutes per week of moderately intensive exercise, such as walking and cycling, spread over several days. Exercising for longer (300 minutes or more, more often and/or more intensively) provides additional health benefits. This advice is in line with the international criteria for light, moderate and heavy intensity.
– Do muscle and bone strengthening activities at least twice a week, combined with balance exercises for the elderly.
And: avoid sitting still a lot (= sedentary behavior).
75 minutes of exercise per week at moderate intensity already yields health benefits, 150 minutes per week yields more and (more than) double that is even better for health. Studies find beneficial effects of moderately and vigorously intensive endurance training and strength training 2 to 5 times a week.
The following exercise guidelines apply to children aged 4 to 18:
– Exercise is good, more exercise is better.
– Do at least 1 hour of moderately intensive exercise every day. Exercising longer, more often and/or more intensively provides additional health benefits.
– Do muscle and bone strengthening activities at least three times a week.
And: avoid sitting still a lot (= sedentary behavior). Sitting a lot probably has many negative effects. For example, it is associated with a high risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and premature death. However, the connection decreases the more we exercise.
The Health Council committee emphasizes that the relationship between the amount of exercise and health is a continuum. The exercise guideline for adults and the elderly is a minimum guideline to motivate those who are not very active to get moving. If you comply with this guideline, you can achieve further health benefits by exercising more.
The challenge is to achieve a lasting change in exercise and sitting behavior. It's not just about getting you moving and sitting down less, but also about keeping you moving.
Calculations by the RIVM show that 44% of adults and the elderly meets the new exercise guidelines. However, we Dutch people do sit a lot. Furthermore, these calculations show that 55% of 4 to 11 year old children meets the standard and only 28% of 12 to 17 year olds.
Roel Bors
Manager Quality & Training Enforce International BV
roel@enforce.nl
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