Physical activity guidelines

The key indicator Physical activity guidelines was defined by the Dutch Health Council in 2017 and contains a number of recommendations:
For adults and seniors (18 years and over):
- Physical activity is good for you – the more, the better.
- Engage in physical activity of moderate intensity for at least 150 minutes every week, spread over several different days. For example, walking and cycling. The longer you are physically active, and the more frequent and/or more vigorous the activity, the more your health will benefit.
- Do activities that strengthen your muscles and bones at least twice a week. Older people should combine these with balance exercises.
- And: avoid spending long periods sitting down.
For children (aged 4 to 17 years):
- Physical activity is good for you – the more, the better.
- Engage in physical activity of moderate intensity for at least one hour every day. The longer you are physically active, and the more frequent and/or more vigorous the activity, the more your health will benefit.
- Do activities that strengthen your muscles and bones at least three times a week.
- And: avoid spending long periods sitting down.
People comply with the physical activity guidelines by both engaging in sufficient physical activity at moderate and/or heavy intensity and performing muscle and bone-strengthening activities.