Why Move More?

Keeping active, whatever your age or ability, brings real benefits to your physical health and mental wellbeing.

Benefits of physical activity

Moving more is a fantastic way to increase our fitness, as well as our promoting better mental and physical wellbeing.

There is evidence that exercise has a positive effect on a number of different areas. It can reduce our risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, falls and fractures.

Exercise also has a positive impact on mental health in the short and long-term, as it reduces the risk of stress, depression and developing Alzheimer’s disease. Exercise has also been shown to improve self-esteem, mood, sleep, as well as strength, flexibility, bone density and co-ordination.

Learn more about how different types of physical activity can improve our health in different ways on the Healthy Weight Healthy Wales website.

For more information on the benefits of exercise, visit Benefits of activity – Move Better Gwent (nhs.wales)

Whilst we all need time to rest and relax in our daily lives, it is important we maintain a healthy balance to ensure we are not leading a sedentary lifestyle.

A sedentary lifestyle means little engaging with movement or physical activity, so someone who spends a large proportion of their time sitting or lying down.

More movement can be added into day-to-day life by making a few simple changes, for example:

• Walking up stairs instead of using an escalator or lift.
• Standing up every hour and doing some stretching when sitting for long periods of time.
• Opting to walk or take the bus instead of the car for short journeys.
• Going for a short walk with a friend to catch-up instead of sitting down to talk.
• Standing up and stretching during TV advert breaks.
• Parking your car further away from your location so you can enjoy a short walk to reach your destination.

Read more about building movement into your daily routine through the We Are Undefeatable website.