Exercising for metabolic health

Step one: level of activity

Dr. Ovadia suggests starting with an honest self-evaluation: How much are you moving every day?

• Sedentary: You don’t exercise outside of basic movements like going up stairs.
   
• Light activity: You move but don’t exert yourself.
   
• Moderate activity: You push yourself sometimes.
   
• Heavy activity: You have a job that gets you moving, and you exercise outside work too.

This way, you know where you are and where you can go.

“You spend eight hours sleeping. For those other 16 hours, how much time do you spend active? How much time do you spend inactive? Start to shift that balance toward active,” Dr. Ovadia says.

Step two: intensity of activity

The next question to ask yourself: How intense of a workout can I tolerate? You want to feel the burn but not wind up in an ambulance.

If you can’t get a sentence out without having to catch your breath, it may be a sign you’ve reached your limit. Chest pain is another red flag. Smart watches and other activity trackers can also help you gauge this.

Step three: type of activity

What movement is right for me? Dr. Ovadia breaks down three main types.

• Cardiovascular exercise (commonly called cardio): Walking, running, swimming and biking fall into this category. Benefits include increased endurance and a mood boost.

“One of the downsides I sometimes see when people focus on cardio is they’ll do an hour at the gym, then they don’t get any activity the rest of the day. It’s better to spread things throughout the day.”

• Resistance training: Think of weightlifting, working with a resistance band and body exercises like pushups, pullups and squats.

  “Resistance training has the most benefit when it comes to your metabolic health,” Dr. Ovadia says. “Being able to build and maintain muscle as you get older is the best predictor of not only how long you’ll live, but also your quality of life. It’s going to allow you to continue to do things you want to do as you get older.”

  Try for 30 minutes of resistance training three times per week, Dr. Ovadia suggests.
   

• Flexibility training: Stretching is the big one here. Again, Dr. Ovadia says this helps with quality of life as you age.

The daily regimen

Dr. Ovadia stresses that you don’t need to live in a gym to be metabolically healthy. Rather, incorporate exercise into your routine when it’s convenient. Take a walk around the block on your lunch break. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. Park far away at the grocery store to get extra steps.

“All of these things actually have pretty significant benefits when it comes to your health,” Dr. Ovadia says.

If you do prefer a gym session, Dr. Ovadia says going early in the day is better than later.

“If you work out later in the day and it’s too close to your bedtime, you may still have adrenaline. That can interfere with sleep,” he says.

You may also promise yourself a workout later in the day, but when you get there, you’re too tired or busy.

Whatever way you exercise, start slow, and build up to a more intense workout as your endurance increases. For example, walk a little further down the block each day.

“Consistency becomes the key, like anything else in life,” Dr. Ovadia says. “If you do it daily for a month, two months or three months, it becomes a habit. It becomes an automatic part of your day. Then you can build upon that.”