Try to walk every day. Ideally, adults should get a total of 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise - like walking- on most (preferably all) days of the week. The more exercise you can do the better, providing you follow the steps discussed in this booklet.

The minimum amount of exercise needed to achieve moderate and high fitness is shown in the following walking examples:

Minimum for Moderate Fitness

· Women: Walk 2 miles in less than 30 minutes at least 3 days/week, or walk 2 miles in 30-40 minutes 5-6 days/week.

· Men: Walk 2 miles in less than 27 minutes at least 3 days/week, or walk 2 miles in 30-40 minutes 6-7 days/week.

Minimum for High Fitness

· Women: Walk 2 miles in less than 30 minutes 5-6 days/week or run 2 miles in 20-24 minutes 4 days/week.

· Men: Walk 2.5 miles in 37.5 minutes 6-7 days/week, or run 2 miles in less than 20 minutes 4-5 days/week.

Younger persons probably need to do a bit more and older persons a bit less than is suggested in the walking example. Dr. Blair’s findings may not seem surprising to many, but health scholars are greeting the new evidence as a major contribution to the knowledge of physical fitness and human longevity. (Blair, VM, Kohl HW, Paffenbarger RS Jr, Clark DG, Cooper KH, Gibbons, LW. Physical Fitness and all-cause mortality: a prospective study of healthy men and women. Journal of the American Medical Association 1989; 262: 2395-2401.)