LEVEL Up Your Fitness

LEVEL Up Your Fitness - your strategy for an active lifestyle and improved health

​Following the EAT Better Strategy - our next series of posts will address activity and exercise and how to be sure that you are getting all the benefits from an active lifestyle.

In this post and those that follow over the next several weeks, we will answer these questions:

• Why is physical activity important?
• Am I doing enough physical activity?
• What type of physical activity should I be doing?

We will also offer lots of tips and recommendations to help you develop your plan.

Why is physical activity important?
​The most straightforward answer to this is that you will feel better if you are active and exercise regularly.  Humans evolved to be active.  When you move regularly and vigorously, you will feel:

• Improved sense of well-being
• Improved self-esteem
• Increased strength
• Increased energy levels
• Improved mood
• Decreased depression and anxiety symptoms
• Decreased stress

Your body will also show positive changes:

• Improved immune function
• Lower blood pressure
• Improved glucose levels
• Improved cholesterol levels
• Improved bone density
• Decreased symptoms from arthritis​

Photo by Evan Wise on Unsplash

Photo by Jenny Hill on Unsplash runner

These benefits combine to improve longevity, reducing premature death from all causes by 16% and from cardiovascular disease by about 25%.

Looked at another way, lack of physical activity is estimated to be the 4th leading cause of death and the principal cause for approximately:

• 21–25% of breast and colon cancers
• 27% of diabetes and 
• 30% of heart disease burden

(Reference: Global health risks: mortality and burden of disease attributable to selected major risks. Geneva, World Health Organization, 2009)

These benefits come from relatively minimal efforts:  20 minutes of exercise and the avoidance of prolonged sitting every day.

Twenty minutes a day to feel better and live longer - not a bad trade-off!

Photo by Jay Kudva on Unsplash biker

The World Health Organization has set 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity/exercise and the avoidance of prolonged sitting (>8 hrs per day) as the threshold required to get most of the benefits from physical activity.

Of course, the benefits do not stop at 150 minutes, and many people feel better with two, three or four times that amount.

Not everyone incorporates consistent physical activity into their week, and these guidelines can be intimidating for those with busy schedules or a lack of exercise experience. 

In fact, only 17% of Canadians get 150 minutes of “moderate-to-vigorous physical activity” per week.  (2019 Canadian Health Measures Survey)

To help people get the benefits from an active lifestyle:

​The LEVEL Up Your Fitness Strategy

1. Move throughout the day
2. 150 minutes per week
3. Resistance training
4. Functional movement training
5. Progressing aerobic fitness
6. Planning for success

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash situp

This strategy will get you started and help you progress.  Master each principle before working on the next.  If you are new to exercise, start at the beginning.  If you currently exercise, review each principle and begin with the lowest one you are not yet doing.

By following this strategy, you will develop habits that incorporate aerobic, resistance and functional movement activities, allowing you to accrue the benefits of exercise sustainably forever.

We categorize exercise behaviours into two levels and encourage mastery at Level 1 to maximize physical activity enjoyment while minimizing injury.

Level 1
At this level, you meet the WHO standard and accrue most of the health benefits from exercise.

• 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous physical activity
• Avoidance of prolonged sitting or standing > 1hr - moving throughout the day

After 6-8 weeks of consistently hitting these targets, you have mastered Level 1. You will have the foundation to progress your exercise to the next level, getting even more benefit in the process.

Level 2
This next level expands on the foundational behaviours by incorporating a portfolio resistance, aerobic, and functional movement training into your routine.

• 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous physical activity
• Avoidance of prolonged sitting or standing > 1hr - moving throughout the day
• Consistently performing ≥two days of resistance training for all major muscle groups
• Performing and maintaining full functional movements 

After 6-8 weeks of consistently hitting these targets, you have mastered Level 2.

We hope that everyone can become Level 2 athletes, progressing their fitness and enjoying the benefits for the rest of their lives.

Next week: Move throughout the day - the first step to an active lifestyle.

Need help applying this to your busy life?

Get a personalized fitness plan to help you get started, progress or improve your enjoyment of physical activity
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The  TARGET Fitness Plan  gives you expert advice to transform your exercise habits - whether you are getting started or want to improve your current program.  Our exercise  physiologist will assess what you are currently doing and provide you with a personalized fitness plan based on the LEVEL Up Your Fitness Strategy.
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