What is the difference between exercise and physical activity?

Physical activity is defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles, which requires a minimum expenditure of energy, that is, walking, climbing the stairs, or playing sports.

Likewise, physical activity has great health benefits, such as the reduction of cardiovascular diseases, breast cancer, colon cancer, among other conditions.

For its part, exercise is characterized by being a planned, structured and repetitive activity, with the purpose of improving physical condition, according to the portal Meditip.

In that order of ideas, the question that arises now is the following: what is the difference between exercise and physical activity? According to the aforementioned portal, physical activity is any movement that is done in daily life; while exercise is classified as a subcategory of physical activity.

In this sense, both forms contribute positively to the health and well-being of the organism. In addition, health professionals always recommend maintaining constant physical activity.since according to the World Health Organization physical inactivity causes about 3.2 million deaths each year, which is why he points out the different benefits of exercising, no matter the amount of time:

Heart health benefits.
It helps prevent and combat non-communicable diseases such as cancer.
Reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Improves reasoning, judgment and learning skills.
Ensures the healthy growth of the young.
Improves general well-being.
Feeling tired.

On the other hand, Mayo Clinic, non-profit organization dedicated to clinical practice, education and research, explains that it is important to include physical activity in the daily routine in some way. You can start by walking for 5 minutes and then increase the time.

For example, exercise at least 30 minutes has multiple health benefits. One of the positive effects of exercising for half an hour a day that stands out better with health It is related to cardiovascular health. This website indicates that doing this time of physical activity positively helps the heart and circulatory system.

Similarly, exercising for 30 minutes helps strengthen mental health. This is because the hormone segregation process is benefited.

Beware of excessive exercise!

Doing physical activity is good for the body, but, like everything else, it should be moderate, since excessive exercise can be harmful to health, according to research published in the journal The Lancet Psychiatry.

This research involved 1.2 million people in the United States. The results showed that people who exercise have 1.5 fewer days of poor mental health per month; but, by doing it more than three hours a day, it worsens the levels of sedentary lifestyle. According to this study, playing sports for 45 minutes three to five times a week is fine, but it’s the limit. Thereafter, it does not provide health benefits.

That is why it is very important to regulate the hours, intensity and effort when doing physical activity. Before starting to exercise, it is advisable to consult a doctor.especially if you have a specific disease or health condition.

Medline Plus, website of the National Library of Medicine of the United States, mentions some of the signs that indicate that the effort in the exercise is being exceeded.