What is an active lifestyle?
That’s the question I had floating around in my head the other day.
I get that being active is different for everyone, but what is the minimum activity you need each day to wear the “active lifestyle” badge of honor on your shirt? If your idea of a great weekend is sitting around watching your favorite streaming service, we can all agree you are not an active person. If you think a great weekend is biking 100 miles in the Alpes, you are unnecessarily active.
I wanted to find something reasonable between doing nothing and always doing something. So, of course, that lead me to do a quick Google search and without a doubt, that lead me to WebMD. What does the all-knowing WebMB have to say?
That’s right; you’ve got cancer.
Sorry, dark humor.
WebMD said this:
Moderately Active: is someone that walks 1 to 3 miles a day at a 3 to 4 mile an hour pace.
Active: someone who walks more than 3 miles a day at a 3 to 4 mile an hour pace.
Walking 3 miles is not a bad baseline to measure your activity. Walking at a 3 to 4 miles an hour pace is a good pace for three-plus miles. I can live with this, but you are missing the boat if you think you’re done being active once you’ve walked 3 miles, or to put it in everyday speak, “I got my 10,000 steps in”.
Living an active lifestyle has more to do with how you see yourself. If you see yourself as active, you will find ways to get activity in each day. You don’t have to worry about your steps or miles, because you are already thinking, how can I get outside today, how can I get to the gym today, or when can I go for a walk.
Now, if you don’t see yourself as active, but see all the benefits of living an active lifestyle, you may need to change the way you think.
How do you get there?
Start thinking like an active person.
Track your steps if you have to.
Get outside.
Find ways to use your fitness in everyday life (take the stairs, park far away, carry all the groceries inside in one trip, etc.)
The WebMD guidelines are a great place to start but don’t stop there.
You will know you are living an active lifestyle if you are consistently looking for opportunities to be active and can say you enjoy being active.
Your Fitness Sherpa
