‘Physical Activity’ or ‘Active Living’ include the full range of human movement from competitive sport and exercise to hobbies, walking, cycling or activities of daily living. Sport is one important element of physical activity and can provide a wide range of benefits for participants. However, it is not for everyone, and there are many other ways we can accumulate sufficient activity to really benefit our health. The diagram below provides some idea of the range of opportunities we can build in to our daily lives.
Recommended Levels of Physical Activity
Health impact of being active
Physical activity not only contributes to well being but is also essential for good health. People who have a physically active lifestyle have approximately 50 per cent less risk of developing coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke and type 2 diabetes compared to those who have a sedentary lifestyle, and can reduce their risk of premature death by about 20-30%
The evidence shows that the health impact of inactivity on coronary heart disease is comparable to that of smoking and almost as great as having high cholesterol levels. Regular physical activity is also associated with reduced risk of obesity, osteoporosis and colon cancer, and with improved mental health and increased functional capacity in older adults. The latter has been identified as a specific action point to be addressed as a ‘Health Gain’ target for Wales by “increasing the present rate of moderate-to-vigorous exercise undertaken by people aged 50 to 65 to 30 minutes on five days a week by 2012”.
The physical activity levels across Wales, as in most of the developed world, are low, with 71% of adults not reaching the recommended minimum of 30 minutes moderate activity on 5 days of the week.
Merthyr is presently showing the same level as the Wales average making Merthyr 10th equal of the 22 Local Authority areas. This however, is a significant improvement on previous data (1996) when activity levels in Merthyr Tydfil were the lowest in Wales.
In Merthyr, over a third of children are active for an hour or more on every day of the week. This is one of the highest (3rd) rates of physical activity recorded throughout Wales.
Local Action
In response to the last Health, Social Care & Wellbeing strategy a local ‘Active Living Strategy and Action Plan’ has been developed with a range of actions identified to continue the progress made over the last few years. A technical document has also been produced to support the strategy.