Walk the Walk

Walking is one of the best forms of moderate exercise - it is free and almost anyone can do it. 

Dr Armstrong, an expert in heart disease risk factors at the Institute of Health and Welfare in Canberra, says to get the health benefits from walking, it has to be brisk, not a stroll. "It's something more than a stroll and less than a jog - a purposeful walk is one way I like to put it," he says. 

"It's something where you notice your heart rate is just a little raised, you have a slight increase in breathing and on a warm day, most people would sweat a little. "We're not talking about jogging, or puffing or panting." 

The good news for busy working parents is that you don't have to get your daily 30-minute dose of moderate activity in one lot. You can accrue the 30 minutes in blocks, say of 10 minutes. 

Break it Up

Dr Armstrong says that while the medical evidence for the health benefits of doing the 30 minutes in short blocks is not as strong as the evidence for moderate exercise generally, it's a good way to get people to think about being active every day. 

"When people think about allocating 30 minutes they think, 'Right, I've got to put on my gym shoes and do some exercise, rather than thinking 'If I walk down to the shops and back, there's 10 minutes and I'm still getting my chore done' ,'' Dr Armstrong says. 

"Or walk to school if you can. Or the old cliché, get off the bus three stops early and walk 10 minutes to work, and if you work in an office with stairs, walk the stairs." To be most effective, you should do regular moderate activity throughout the week.

A long hike on the weekend and very little during the week is not as effective. Long weekend walks are better than nothing, Dr Armstrong says, but a "two-hour walk once a week is not as good as three 20-minute walks on different days".

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