Does owning a pet make you more active?

This text was written by a TecMundo columnist; Learn more at the end.

Unlike children and dogs, adults need to be lifted out of their chairs and exercised routinely. And how difficult our relationship with physical exercise has been, right? A start may be very close to home with dogs, our most common pets. Learn more about “dog walking“, a simple practice that can improve health (yours and your dog’s).

The importance of light physical activities

Worldwide physical activity recommendations for health focus on moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, of which 150 minutes per week (equivalent to 2 and a half hours or 75 minutes per week, respectively) is recommended. These include activities such as brisk walking and more intense exercises such as running and lifting weights. This leads some to think that light physical activity, such as slow walks, may not be beneficial to health.

In their recommendations, Canadians were the first to recognize that getting a few hours of light physical activity, including standing for longer periods of time, is important for health. Recommendations based on high-quality studies (meta-analyses) showed that the risk of death was significantly reduced by light physical activities and that doubling the time spent on them was associated with a 29% reduction in mortality. It seems that every action, no matter how small, counts in living a little longer.

There is a growing body of evidence showing that light physical activities, prudently distributed in our daily routine, such as daily walks, light sports such as billiards, fishing, bowling in our spare time, provide health benefits and reduce the risk of chronic disease and death. Light housework such as cooking, dusting furniture, caring for plants, and washing dishes and walking the dog.

These light activities can make up 25% of our day and make a significant difference to health and longevity. In these, both your heartbeat and breathing change slightly, making it possible to talk and even sing in a way that does not happen with moderate- and high-intensity activities.

walking with dog

“A”dog walkingIn other words, walking a dog can provide interesting benefits to our health as well as to our beloved pet. Walking is a common physical activity and one of the safest and most cost-effective activities available, and it can also be an attractive and easily accessible activity for sedentary and sedentary people who want to start physical exercise. It has been found in the literature that pet owners, such as dogs, go on more recreational walks than people who do not have dogs.

The routine and durable nature of every season of the year are the features that make this physical activity sustainable, as we take our dog to do his business and walk even in the rain and cold. Moreover, this is related to canine and human health, and it also contributes to greater socialization in the neighborhood, because when you go out with your pet, the person is more exposed to interaction with neighbors and acquaintances.

Increasing physical activity on four legs instead of two

Among other factors that make the event work, we also have owners’ sense of obligation to walk their dogs, as well as motivational support that drives them to walk their animals. Dogs have been domesticated for more than 10,000 years, but only in the last 30 years has man’s best friend taken on a new role: getting us off the couch for a while and getting us to take more steps every day.

“The best part about taking my dog ​​for a walk is that I can have more thoughtful moments in my day. “When I come back from my walk, I feel more energized, focused, and moved by Dexter’s happiness,” she says. lutz – digital content creator.

The latest research conducted in Australia revealed that a family’s adoption of a dog has a positive effect on children’s physical activity. Just like losing the dog has a negative impact. In terms of intensity, this may be related to the breed of dog; More active dogs such as greyhounds, beagles, spaniels and collies can pick up the pace.

But here I emphasize: continuity of activity is better than intensity.

In science, we still need better evidence to determine the cause and effect of the relationship between owning a dog and being more active. Walking a dog won’t drastically change anyone’s fitness, but if you have a dog, you’ll likely increase your physical activity levels through walking, which is good news for human health.

Maybe there is an intention to improve the life of a physically inactive person. Maybe he looks at an athlete and admires him and wants to get closer to him. However, the path from physical inactivity to intense exercise is long and it is recommended that this process be gradual. Since physical activity behavior is a behavior that should be adopted throughout your life, there is no point in rushing.

Among the new approaches designed to increase the physical activity level of the population, we have the perspective of stairs instead of elevators. Gradually work your way towards small changes that can lead to more intense workouts desired.

It’s a process that involves standing more and reducing sitting time (a tip I’ve given before here is to drink plenty of water because you’ll need to get up and go to the toilet), then walking more throughout the day. (we include dog walks here), then increase the intensity of the walk or even other exercises.

On the other hand, the elevator approach that leaves the seat flat for heavy workouts in the gym seems too abrupt and does not create conditions for continuity for many people.

Enjoy moving with your dog, it’s good for both of you.

***
Fábio Dominski He holds a PhD in Human Movement Sciences and a degree in Physical Education from Santa Catarina State University (UDESC). He is a university professor and researcher at the Laboratory of Sport and Exercise Psychology (LAPE/UDESC). he is doing scientific dissemination on social media there podcast available on Spotify. Author of Physical Exercise and Science – Facts and Myths.