Just a QUARTER of Americans are getting the minimum amount of exercise each week

Nearly three-quarters of Americans fail to get the bare minimum amount of exercise recommended by the government every week, according to an official report. 

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says adults should do 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week – such as brisk walking, cycling or gardening – and do muscle-strengthening activities at least two days per week.

But up to 28 percent of people in the US are meeting these thresholds, according to a national survey of more than 30,000 people aged 18 and above across the country.

The study published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that only 47 percent of adults meet at least one exercise recommendation. 

The study comes as a leading official has received widespread criticism for downplaying the effects of exercise in combatting obesity. 

The CDC found that only around a quarter of Americans are meeting fitness guidelines set by the HHS – and less than half are even meeting one of the two standards set by the nation’s leading health agencies

A 2020 National Health Interview Survey of 30,407 from across the US was used for the CDC study.

Researchers note that the Covid pandemic may have influenced findings, as lockdowns kept many away from the gym and activities that keep them in shape.

For the survey, participants self-reported their weekly activity levels. Strength training includes activities such as weight and resistance exercises.

Moderate physical activity can count as any exercise that causes the body’s heart rate to increase.

Researchers found that less than half of Americans met either one of the two guidelines.

Only around a quarter of Americans meet both guidelines, with the CDC researchers noting that in no region of the country do more than 28 percent of people follow them.

Researchers found that the urban population is much more likely to meet the standards, with 28 percent reporting such. This is compared to only 16 percent of rural Americans.

Still, both of these figures are extremely low, the CDC warns.

Around 27 percent of Americans who live in large metro areas meet both guidelines, and 22 percent of those in medium and small metro areas.

This could be attributed to the compressed nature of many metro areas, with gyms and other recreational activities more accessible.

Urban Americans are also typically wealthier than their rural counterparts, another factor linked to more exercise.

People who live in America’s western region are also more likely to exercise than their peers, with 28.5 percent meeting both thresholds.

For comparison, only 24.4 percent of those who live in the northeast, 23.4 percent of Midwesterners and 22 percent of Americans in the south meet both guidelines.

The sedentary lifestyle of many Americans, combined with poor diet habits, has primarily been responsible for the nation’s weight crisis.

The CDC warns that more than 70 percent of the population is overweight, including 40 percent of Americans that suffer from obesity.