A deep dive into physical activity across the UK
People in the UK spend an average of 7 hours and 2 minutes sat down per day, with over a quarter (26%) sitting for 9 hours or more. The longer we sit, the more likely we are to develop diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Studies have found that even when exercising daily, we’re still at risk of developing diabetes and other chronic conditions if we regularly sit for more than 6 hours a day[1]. Prolonged inactivity is responsible for one in six UK deaths and is estimated to cost the UK £7.4 billion annually, with £0.9 billion to the NHS alone[2]. Our survey found that 65% of us admit to quite or very often sitting continuously for one hour or more, putting a huge proportion of Brits at risk for sedentary lifestyle related diseases. It's part of a worrying trend. The government states that people in the UK are less active now than during the 60s, and if this trend continues we will be 35% less active by 2020.
Catastrophic Consequences
The impact on our health is clear. Further independent research says that if prolonged sedentary behaviour had been eliminated, almost 70,000 UK deaths might have been avoided in 2016[3]. There are catastrophic consequences of not taking action on inactivity. The Wellbeing Index found that many of us are aware of these risks: over 60% of us are somewhat worried or very worried about the impact of a sedentary lifestyle on our health. However, that concern isn’t translating into action: only 12% of Brits say they are proactively taking steps to reduce the amount of time they spend sedentary. It’s important to note that physical activity does little to combat prolonged sedentary time — exercise cannot undo damage caused by excess sitting. More needs to be done to get people moving more throughout the day, as almost two-thirds of us continuously sit for 1 hour or more on a regular basis.
How active are we?
Our Index found that over half of people living in the UK (55%) exercise at least 2-3 days a week. But when it comes to those who do exercise, a whopping 84% fail to always meet the NHS guidelines of 150 minutes per week. Almost one in five (18%) say they never exercise at all. Of those who exercise, outdoor activities are the preferred method of staying active: nearly three in five (64%) say they take part in hiking and walking. Reconnecting with nature could be the answer to getting more sedentary Brits to stand up. It’s well known that spending time outdoors has many other added health benefits — we burn more calories due to wind resistance and temperature regulation, release more of the feel-good hormones dopamine and serotonin and get a healthy boost of vitamin D. The outdoors also has benefits for mental health that can last up to seven hours[4]. With 84% of us failing to meet the NHS guidelines of 150 minutes per week, we need to find ways to become a more active nation. In the next chapter, we'll look at the perceived barriers to physical activity and how we can become a happier, healthier, more active nation.
Most Brits are failing to hit the mark when it comes to physical activity levels. Just 16% of us manage the 150 minutes per week recommended by NHS.
Brought to you by our partner, Westfield Health
