You'll find all kind of rewards when you Find Thirty® minutes of physical activity every day.
Thirty minutes or more is all it takes to gain some big benefits:
- have better long term health
- have more energy
- manage your weight better
- feel more confident and happy
- feel less stressed, more relaxed and sleep better.
Social health rewards
Being active can help improve relationships with friends, family and others. Take a walk with your partner and find time to talk, or play backyard cricket and spend quality time
with your kids.
Being physically active through a team sport or walking in your local area, can:
- help you make friends
- strengthen relationships with family, friends and neighbours
- increase social support
- connect your community
- break down social isolation.
Mental health rewards
Taking part in physical activity improves mental wellbeing (in the short term and longer term) by reducing stress, anxiety and depression¹.
Other mental health benefits include:
- reducing stress, anger, sadness and insecurities
- helping to alleviate the symptoms of depression
- improving general feelings of confidence and well being.
Download a copy of Heart Foundation’s Physical Activity and Depression fact sheet (
968kb)
Check out our web links to relevant mental health campaigns or initiatives.
Physical health rewards
People who don’t take part in regular moderate-intensity physical activity are nearly twice as likely to have a heart attack as those who do².
Health benefits from regular physical activity include:
- reduced risk of heart disease
- reduced risk of some cancers
- reduced risk of type 2 diabetes
- healthier blood cholesterol level
- lower blood pressure
- stronger bones and muscles (less risk of osteoporosis and falls)
- recovering better from a heart attack (if occurred).
Environmental rewards
Replace short car trips with walking or cycling to help the environment, save money and improve your health.
Each year in Perth, more than 90 million private car trips of less than one kilometre are made. A one-kilometre car trip makes 300g of carbon dioxide, which equates to 27 million kilograms of carbon dioxide being released into our environment each year, contributing to the greenhouse effect.
Economic rewards
Did you know that staff who walk to work are more productive, have less sick days and improved fitness?
Using alternative forms of transport to travel to and from school and other places can save money on petrol. According to the RAC, a 2.2L car travelling 15,000km/year costs about $140 a week to run.
Are you ready to find your rewards? Find the type of activity for you!
Footnotes
- Australia Institute of Health and Welfare. Australia’s health 2004. Canberra: AIHW; 2004.
- Blair S, Kampert J, Kohl H et al. Influences of cardio respiratory fitness and other precursors on cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality in men and women. Journal of the American Medical Association. 1996; 276(3):205.10.