It also found that fitter women who did regular muscle-strengthening training were 36 per cent less likely to suffer a fatal heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular event. Women statistically lag behind men in meaningful exercise and this often starts in school when girls stop exercising as they reach adolescence. Typically, adult women don’t return to exercise to any great extent due to the pressures of work, caring for family and concerns over body image. The NHS currently recommends that adults do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity a week. This is in addition to regular weight, resistance and balance training. However, if your weekly schedule or motivation only allows for bite-size exercise chunks then incorporate shorter bursts of activity like five minutes of stretching and 20 seconds of wall squats. Even a small amount of improvement in your activity levels can have a beneficial effect on life expectancy.
