80% of women too unfit to be healthy?

[FlowerArranger]

I listened to Women's Hour while doing my workout today. In a segment on women in sport, one contributor stated that research shows that 80% of women are too unfit to be healthy.

I Googled and found a reference to a Canadian study from 2007 and CDC research from 2013:

A new (US) government study estimates that nearly 80 percent of adult Americans do not get the recommended amounts of exercise each week, potentially setting themselves up for years of health problems.

www.cbsnews.com/news/cdc-80-percent-of-american-adults-dont-get-recommended-exercise/

I don't suppose British women do much better? If this is indeed true, it is is shocking.

I remember when my children were little and I was working full-time, there was little or no time to exercise in a formal way - though I'm sure all the running after them and running up and down stairs and housework and gardening kept me fit enough!

If this is you, you are excused......... but what about all the years before and after looking after children? Why don't women exercise enough to keep themselves healthy? Which the CDC defined as:

at least 2.5 hours of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity, or a combination of both

Personally I (in my 60s) work out most days and I feel so much better for it.

YABU - I don't see the need to exercise regularly
YANBU - regular exercise is vital

Look at the older generation though. Those in their 80's and 90's now. They didn't have any formal exercise

My mother is in her mid eighties. She’s never done a day of formal exercise in her life. I’ve never seen her drink water in its native state either.

My father was the same. Lived until his 90s.

The labour saving devices thing is really crucial though.

My grandmothers had to do so much very physical housework that they really didn't need anything extra exercise wise.

Now, because I have RA and any exercise bar swimming will leave me bedridden for a week. Cam't even really walk these days. Don't have a pool anywhere near.

In the past, being honest, I was too tired with work and rushing around and I just hate exercise. I don't get endorphins at all, just get sweaty and even more tired. It was the biggest chore. In the end I did do pilates but had to stop as too painful now. So it wasn't time, it was motivation.

I don't smoke, drink, eat very healthily and that will have to be enough.

TBH my mum is about my only motivation to exercise.

She’s late 80s, never did exercise as it’s boring and unpleasant, but is now almost immobile with arthritis and muscle atrophy. Her brother, with the same genes, was tediously assiduous in his exercise but is still dashing about at the same age.

I started off by seeing exercise as a chore - something that had to be done. Just like we know that we have to spend time brushing out teeth. I think most people would be better thinking of it like this; I’m sure most people would prefer to be doing other things (like watching tv, browsing the internet etc). I soon grew to enjoy it (and the results). I’ve had periods where I’ve had long breaks due to surgery etc but I always go back to it.

You can exercise for free - there are numerous workouts on YouTube for all levels. Lucy Wyndham-Read has lots of great workouts for beginners. I don’t pay a penny to exercise, though I have cheap weights that I’ve had for years. I also have DC under 10 and don’t get as much sleep as I’d like. However I’m in my 40s and want to keep as fit and strong as possible for as long as possible. The good thing about home workouts is you can do them in the evenings when DC are in bed if need be.

My grandparents are in their 90s and never did ‘exercise’ as such - they never did anything that got them out of breath, or lifted weights, however they led much more active lives than the majority of people nowadays. They’d do lots of walking, and were active all day, even when at home. They’re probably still more active than many people who go from house to car, door to door, then sit on screens all day. With the general change in lifestyle in recent years (due to more car use and screens) I’m sure most people would benefit from doing a bit of exercise most days. It doesn’t have to be for long.

I think people get away without being active or eating healthily for so many years but it is likely it will catch up with them. Yes many of us know of very fit and healthy people who have become ill/ died, as mentioned elsewhere in the thread, but personally I’d rather do what I can to try and stay healthy, fit and strong, if possible. I also want to set a good example to my DC. I have both sexes and both are equally encouraged to exercise (in response to comments above) - both do sporting activities outside of school, plus they always walk to and from school so it’s part of their lifestyle to be active.

The labour saving devices thing is really crucial though.

Such as what?

@KnittedCardi
Great idea, let’s go back to hand washing clothes and walking everywhere. We wouldn’t have to worry about going to the gym then!

Washing machines
Dishwashers
Vacuum cleaners

Fridge freezers.... decades ago if you didn't have a fridge housewives would have to shop daily and would likely not have a car so would walk to shop and back every day carrying groceries. Now we get our weekly shopping delivered or drive to the supermarket.

Ha ha ha, yes the water thing too! My DM used to say that water was only for bathing. She never drank a glass of water in her life.

Washing machines
Dishwashers
Vacuum cleaners

All of which my mid eighties mother had in her twenties.

My grandmothers cooked absolutely everything from scratch - they were kneading dough, lifting heavy cooking pots. They were mowing the lawn with a manual lawn mower. They were hand washing clothes and hanging them out to dry. They didn't have access to a car during the day so were carrying heavy shopping.

All of that was fairly standard in the 60s.

Pretty much everything. DM hand washed a lot of clothes. Scrubbed nappies in buckets until her hands bled. Swept and used those funny hand help manual push floor cleaners. I remember big stock pots boiling on the stove full of handkerchiefs 😝

All of that was fairly standard in the 60s.

I was alive in the sixties. Not many women mowed the lawn and aluminium pots were the norm, as were washing machines fridges, vacuum cleaners etc. Fewr people did own cars but groceries were delivered twice a week in our case. Milk every day. Butchers, fishmongers, even ironmongers had mobile vans that came round once or twice a week.

Dishwashers were unusual, I admit.

I remember hand washing stuff when my washing machine broke down. It's time consuming and absolutely exhausting. So much respect for those women who had to hand wash all their lives!

I largely disagree on your second point. I am a freelance consultant so tend to move around different companies fairly regularly on a project by project basis. One of the first things I do when starting a new assignment/project is join a local gym, I have been a member of all the main chain gyms at some stage as well as loads of independents. In my experience pretty much nobody gives a shit about what other people look like in the gym, they are usually focused doing their own thing be it cardio, weights or a class. I would say on average only about 30% of the people (men and women) down your average gym are what I would call very fit and athletic looking, the vast majority are just normal looking people trying to get their 3 x exercise a week target. Most people when seeing a new out of shape person join the gym they think 'good on you' before cracking on with their exercise. On the rare occasions I have seen some twatty bloke make a nuisance of themselves they have been asked to leave by staff and had their membership cancelled.

I don't know about the vacuum cleaner, but I think washing machines and certainly dishwashers were regarded as luxury items in the 60s.
So, while I don't doubt what you are saying, I don't think it was the norm.

Ah so many reasons, OP. I'm knackered most of the time, so when I actually get down time I just collapse. Pregnancy wrecked my body, I now deal with chronic pain. Exercise sometimes helps, sometimes it really really hurts, and vigorous exercise is medically unwise for me.

Prior to that, I stopped running at 13 when boys started leering at my chest. I stopped swimming competitively at 15, apparently togs are only made for D cups and under?! Finding supportive, affordable swimwear that fits a G cup is a lost cause. Ditto sports bras, useless in the bigger sizes (if you can find them). I need to wear several at once to be somewhat contained which is hot and uncomfortable. Add in feeling unsafe to go places alone to work out, no money for the gym - it's walking the block and yoga at home for me.

Perhaps if we looked at addressing the barriers more women would exercise. Instead of beating them with (another) stick saying they're not trying hard enough.

That's class dependent though surely?
My nan had it very, very hard. I actually remember her getting her first washing machine. It was one of those twin tub things.

I hear you - I still hate parkrun … far more competitive fast people at the ones near me as opposed to people doing it just for their health

I would though heartily recommend the free NHS coach to 5k app .. you can do it by yourself , and I think it literally starts with bursts of running for 30 seconds interspersed with walking and gradually works up .. I did it 5/6 years ago so can’t remember exactly

The human body is designed to move, we haven't yet evolved to be largely sedentary. Sure doing all of those other things is absolutely great, but exercise is important whether you can be arsed to do it or not. This thread isn't full of people claiming they spend hours a day running marathons or that they revolve their life around exercise; the opposite actually. Many have posted about not overly enjoying it but prioritising it as an important aspect of self care and keeping yourself healthy, and how it slots into their busy days. The minimum recommended times are really small over the course of a week, it's fine to not exercise but some of the excuses people have boil down to the fact they just don't want to. Its fine, but it's not fair to make out everyone else has it easy or oodles of time magically.

So, while I don't doubt what you are saying, I don't think it was the norm.

Washing machines did look different. They weren’t all automatic. Some were twin tubs and most were top loaders. Our next door neighbour’s top loader had a built in mangle rather than a fast spin cycle.

The was a lot more walking done by everybody.

This is what makes me feel a bit better about overweight. I might be fat but I'm definitely fit. Early 50's and I swim 3 times a week, 3 spin classes plus dog walking.

Yes, this. My grandparents in their 90s still do cook from scratch, hang washing out to dry and walk to the shops/ market and carry bits of shopping back.

Neither they nor my parents have ever owned a dishwasher or tumble dryer. Neither have I - it’s just seen as normal in our families to wash up and hang clothes up to dry. I still use a manual lawn mower too! All through choice.

My grandparents would constantly be doing things around the house - they would vacuum far more frequently than I do, and do things like handwash curtains every other week. They’d redecorate their house themselves every year, and spend lots of time gardening and maintaining things. They were just on the go all the time.

Why should I try lots of different things when I have already had a go at most of them and either hated them or been bored silly. I have a healthy lifestyle and am not overweight, my body looks OK to me and DH. I ride my bike down to the pub in the summer but don’t actually enjoy it. I ride horses, but that isn’t usually counted as exercise on here. I do find the OP goes on and on like a new Vegan. I used to run a care service and our service users included plenty of old athletes as well as some couch potatoes. Striving for fitness might help statistically for old age but for you as an individual life remains a bit of a lottery at 80 plus.

I don't think I do 2.5 hours of activity weekly. Maybe 2 hours (workout 3-4 times a week)+housekeeping stuff, shopping etc., but not sure if you can call it "physical activity" if it's not even fast paced walk. I promised myself to walk every day with baby to get some fresh air and close activity circles on apple watch 😂I love eating, I can eat more than my big husband. But one some days I eat very little, I don't feel like it, so maybe it evens out somehow.