How does your time spent on weekly exercise compare to the average?

Don't worry - you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Words by Ellena Rowlin

Oh, regular weekly exercise, a distant dream for many of us. Whether your name means you exercise more or less, or you're just too busy to factor it in, excuses are often found to put off that dreaded 6am gym session. Most of us spend day in day out fretting that we’re not embracing a healthy lifestyle as much as we should be. And that pressure only seems to build up when we are bombarded with images of washboard stomachs and strange looking green juices on every billboard.

Well, worry no more because we can now reveal the number of minutes of exercise the average person does a week - and it’s less than you think.

We were pretty shocked to find out that the average person in the UK and Ireland is doing just 48 minutes of weekly exercise, according to research released this week by Opinion Matters and Aramark. That's less than one third of the recommended amount - all those double booked spin classes and missed morning runs don’t seem so bad now, do they?

Although, while it may be the average it definitely isn’t the healthy recommendation. The NHS suggests at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity (like cycling or fast walking) or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity (like running) every week. Running has other fab benefits too, and can transform our mind as well as our bodies.

On top of that we should be doing strength exercises at least two days a week. Yes, that means braving the weight section… or you could just buy a resistance band for workouts at home.

By doing a mere ten minutes of exercise every day you’re already beating the average. That’s only a run around the block or a step class once a week. But don’t forget to treat yourself to a glass of wine in front of the TV every now and again. We’re sure we’ve read that as a health benefit somewhere too.

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