Why Should You Stay Active on the Weekend? (Health news)

Posted: Apr 12, 2023 in In the News

This article originally appeared in Healthnews on April 12, 2023.

 

Why Should You Stay Active on the Weekend?

By Jennifer Triplett

Like most people, your weekdays are busy. Between your job, family, and workout schedule, you are probably exhausted by the time the weekend rolls around. Of course, you want to relax. However, did you know that even professional athletes work out on weekends? Let's discuss how much exercise you should get each week, the importance of spacing out your rest days, and how to continue exercising on the weekends.

The optimal amount of exercise

The American Heart Association recommends getting at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week. Alternatively, you can aim for 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise per week.

So what's the difference?

• Your breathing will quicken at a moderate exercise intensity, but you are not out of breath.
• You can still hold a conversation when exercising moderately but should not be able to sing.
• You will develop a light sweat after around 10 minutes of moderate exercise.

For vigorous exercise intensity, your breathing will become quick and deep. You can only say a few words at a time and begin sweating after only a few minutes.

Moderate exercise is considered 50% to 70% of your maximum heart rate. Vigorous exercise is 70% to 85%. An easy and fairly accurate way to calculate your maximum heart rate is to subtract your age from 220. From there, you can figure out your heart rate zones. Many smartwatches and heart rate monitors do the calculations for you.

In addition, you should also engage in moderate to high-intensity muscle-strengthening workouts at least two days per week. With these recommendations, you're looking at a minimum of five weekly exercise days.

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