Dr. Dylan Wyatt, an emergency medicine physician at Aspirus-St. Luke’s, offers some advice for easing back into exercise if you’ve been inactive for a period of time.

It’s been said that “sitting is the new smoking”… Do you agree with that?

Dr. Dylan: Absolutely. Physical activity is one of the most important parts of living a healthy life. The average American gets 20 minutes of exercise per day (around 2 hours per week), which is far too low! The CDC recommends we get 4 hours of exercise a week, and even that is probably on the low end of what we should be working towards for optimal health. A mix of low and high intensity exercise is the best.

How do you ease yourself back into exercise?

It’s important to start slow and build up to your goals over time. If you’ve taken a prolonged period of time off, don’t jump right back into the same exercise intensity as before. Your body will adjust over time; remember that the goal should always be steady improvement.

Talk to your Dr.

Before starting exercise, check in with your physician or provider. You want to make sure your heart is healthy enough for physical activity, any limitations on activities or intensities, or any potential medication side effects you need to be aware of.

Start slow

It’s very easy to overdo it which can lead to potentially serious injury – which will set you back even further than you started! 

Listen to your body

Focus on learning the difference between burning/aching pain that indicates a good workout, and the sharper pain that indicates injury. You should feel essentially no pain with low intensity exercises: if pain occurs, pull back on the intensity/speed/pace.

Stretch

Mobility is key to avoiding injury. Make general stretching part of your morning routine, and put extra focus on the muscle groups you would be using just prior to more intensive exercise.

Recover

Recovery is nearly as important as activity. Avoid working similar muscle groups with high-intensity exercises in successive days to prevent overuse injuries. Get plenty of sleep. Stay hydrated.

What kind of exercise should we focus on? How much?

The best exercise is the one that you enjoy doing. Exercise should be a joyful celebration of what our bodies are capable of, a way to enjoy the outdoors, meet new people, and promote our health.

If you are unsure of which exercise you’d enjoy, start with walking: a low-intensity activity that will help set you up for additional activities if you so choose.