Physical Activity Boosts Brain Health

"Regular physical activity is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. Not only is it good for your muscles and bones, it can keep your brain healthy, too.

Physical activity can improve your cognitive health—helping you think, learn, problem-solve, and enjoy an emotional balance. It can improve memory and reduce anxiety or depression. But you don’t have to be a fitness guru to reap the benefits. Any amount of physical activity can help. No matter your age or fitness level, physical activity can help improve sleep, brain health, and quality of life.

Regular physical activity can also reduce your risk of cognitive decline, including dementia. One studyexternal icon found that cognitive decline is almost twice as common among adults who are inactive compared to those who are active.

Most adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity  physical activity weekly. This can be broken into 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. In addition to improving brain health, following these recommendations for physical activity can help you sleep and feel better, lose weight, reduce your risk of 20 chronic health conditions including heart disease and some cancers, and add years to your life.

What You Can Do

Healthy older adults can have cognitive decline. Learn about the important health benefits of physical activity for healthy aging.

Being active is easier than you may think. It doesn’t have to happen in one stretch. You can break up your activity across the week, and some activity is better than none. Here are four activities you can add to your daily routine to help become a healthier you:

1. Dance.
   Turn up the music at home and dance. Twisting and turning will burn calories without even feeling like exercise.
2. Be physically active while watching TV.
   Look for ways to reduce sedentary time and increase active time. For example, keep a list of quick activities, like squats or marching in place, near the remote so that you can be active during commercial breaks.
3. Add physical activity into your daily routine.
   Walking is a good way to start being active. When shopping for essential items, increase your activity by parking at the back of the parking lot and walking to the shop. Use the stairs instead of the elevator or get off transit one stop sooner.
4. Walk the dog.
   Dogs are great walking companions and can help you have an active lifestyle. One studyexternal icon found that dog owners on average walk 22 minutes more every day compared to people who don’t own a dog..."
   Brain health 

Physical Activity for People with Disability

"Physical Activity for People with Disability

Everybody needs physical activity for good health. However, less than half of U.S adults with serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs (mobility disability) report engaging in aerobic physical activity.¹ For those who are active, walking is the most common physical activity.¹ Yet, adults with disabilities report more environmental barriers for walking than those without disabilities.² Here are some ways that people with disabilities can stay active and healthy.

Physical activity plays an important role in maintaining health, well-being, and quality of life. According to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd editionpdf iconexternal icon, physical activity can help control weight, improve mental health, and lower the risk for early death, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers. Physical activity can also improve mental health by reducing depression and anxiety. For people with disabilities, physical activity can help support daily living activities and independence.

Any amount of physical activity that gets your heart beating faster can improve your health. Some activity is better than none. For even greater health benefits, the Guidelines recommend that all adults, with or without disabilities, get at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of aerobic physical activity per week. Activities can be broken down into smaller amounts, such as about 25 minutes a day every day. Muscle-strengthening activities, such as adapted yoga or working with resistance bands, provide additional health benefits..."
Exercise and disability

Five Ways to Get Active and Stay Healthy from Home!

"This National Minority Health Monthexternal icon focuses on being active and healthy. Find out what you and your family can do to be more active from home.

Being physically active is one of the most important things you can do to improve your health. Physical activity has immediate health benefits, such as better sleep and reduced stress and anxiety. Regular physical activity can decrease depression and reduce your risk of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers.

The good news is that every little bit of physical activity can provide health benefits – the key is to move more and sit less throughout the day. And there are many ways to be active wherever you live..."

Stay healthy at home

Physical Activity for People with Disabilities

"Everybody needs physical activity for good health. Most adults with disabilities are able to participate in physical activity, yet nearly half of them do not get any aerobic physical activity.¹ Learn how people with disabilities can find their own path to physical activity.

Physical activity plays an important role in maintaining health, well-being, and quality of life. According to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition pdf icon[1.9 MB]external icon, physical activity can help control weight, improve mental health, and lower the risk for early death, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers. For people with disabilities, physical activity also can help support daily living activities and independence. All adults, with and without disabilities, need at least 2.5 hours per week of aerobic physical activity, at a moderate-intensity level, to gain many of these benefits.

People with Disabilities

One in four U.S. adults is living with a disability,² including

• Serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs
• Deafness or serious difficulty hearing
• Blindness or serious difficulty seeing
• Serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions
• Difficulty doing errands alone
• Difficulty dressing or bathing

Adults with disabilities are more likely to have heart disease, stroke, diabetes, or cancer than adults without disabilities.³Physical activity can help reduce the impact of these chronic diseases. Disability does not have to equal poor health. Most adults with disabilities are able to participate in regular physical activity; however, nearly half of all adults with disabilities do not get any aerobic physical activity..."
Disability and exercise

Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans

"Physical activity is key to improving the health of the Nation. Based on the latest science, the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans is an essential resource for health professionals and policy makers that provides recommendations on how everyone can improve their health through regular physical activity. Learn ways to help people understand the benefits of physical activity and how to make it a part of their regular routine..."
Physical activity

Physical Inactivity Among Adults Aged 50 Years and Older — United States, 2014

"Physical activity can help delay, prevent, or manage many of the chronic diseases for which adults aged ≥50 years are at risk (1–3). These diseases can impact the length and quality of life, as well as the long-term ability to live independently.* All adults aged ≥50 years, with or without chronic disease, gain health benefits by avoiding inactivity (2,3). To examine the prevalence of inactivity by selected demographic characteristics and chronic disease status in mid-life and older adults, CDC analyzed data on adults aged ≥50 years from the 2014 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Overall, 27.5% of adults aged ≥50 years reported no physical activity outside of work during the past month. Inactivity prevalence significantly increased with increasing age and was 25.4% among adults aged 50–64 years, 26.9% among those aged 65–74 years, and 35.3% among those aged ≥75 years. Inactivity prevalence was significantly higher among women than men, among Hispanics and non-Hispanic blacks than among non-Hispanic whites, and among adults who reported ever having one or more of seven selected chronic diseases than among those not reporting one. Inactivity prevalence significantly increased with decreasing levels of education and increasing body mass index. To help adults with and without chronic disease start or maintain an active lifestyle, communities can implement evidence-based strategies, such as creating or enhancing access to places for physical activity, designing communities and streets to encourage physical activity, and offering programs that address specific barriers to physical activity..."
Adult physical activity