Physical Activity & Nutrition
Stay Active to Stay Healthy!
Physical activity is any body movement that increases your heart beat, causes you to breathe harder, and requires more energy than you use while resting. Exercise is any structured physical activity you do specifically to improve health or fitness.
Physical activity is key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. Balancing the calories you take in through food and drinks with the calories you burn during activity is important, even if you are currently at a healthy weight. Regular physical activity reduces the risk of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, certain cancers, diabetes, high blood pressure, and others.
- Healthier body weight
- Improves heart, lung, and blood vessel function
- Increases muscle and strength
- Improves balance
- Lowers risk of dying early from any cause
- Prevents falls and reduces the risk of breaking a hip
- Makes it easier to perform daily activities
- Improves mental function
- Improves sleep
- Adults: Get at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week!
- Teens & Children: Get at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day!
Eating Healthy for Life
Good nutrition is having a well-balanced eating plan. Fueling our bodies with healthy food options will help us feel better and give us energy to be active throughout our day!
Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight means staying consistent with our healthy food choices at each meal and moving more during the day!
To set yourself up for healthy eating success, keep things simple. Eating healthier doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are some tips to help with your success!
- Fruits & Vegetables
- Whole Grains
- ddBeans & Legumesd
- Nuts & Seeds
- Skinless poultry and lean animal proteins
- Add healthy fats to your meals
- Cut down on added sodium
- Increase fiber intake
- Color Your Plate with variety
- Limit high calorie and fat foods
- Plan ahead
- Drink more water
- Take smaller portions
- Eat smaller bites
- Take your time eating
- Limit snacks between meals
