Exercising Spouse Positively Impacts Other Spouse

Women's Health News

Obie Editorial Team

  • If the wife was getting the recommended amount of exercise, her partner was 70% more likely to be meeting exercise recommendations at the second interview.
  • If the partner was getting the recommended amount of exercise, his wife was 40% more likely to be getting enough exercise at the second interview.

Exercise recommendations used in the study came from the AHA, which recommends:

  • 150 minutes per week of exercise at moderate intensity (you can talk but are too winded to sing) or
  • 75 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity exercise (can’t say more than a few words at a time).

Of the participants in the Johns Hopkins study:

  • 45% of the men were already meeting the AHA recommendation at the first interview.
  • 33% of the women were meeting AHA recommendations.

Cobb says, “This study tells us that one spouse could have a really positive impact on the other when it comes to staying fit and healthy for the long haul.” It also suggests healthcare workers might have better luck counseling couples together on the importance of exercise rather than counseling individuals alone.


Sources:

  1. Preidt, Robert. "When One Spouse Exercises, the Other May Start, Too." MedlinePlus. National Institutes of Health, 6 Mar. 2015. US National Library of Medicine. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
  2. "American Heart Association Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults." American Heart Association. American Heart Association, Feb. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.