MINIMUM EFFECTIVE DOSE
Healthy from the Start Resources for Shiftworkers
Finding the time and energy to exercise as a shiftworker can be difficult. Fortunately, research shows that even the smallest amount of exercise can be beneficial for your health and wellbeing.
HEALTHY ADULTS SHOULD BE AIMING FOR:
2.5-5.0 hours of moderate-intensity activity
or 1.25-2.5 hours of high-intensity activity, each week.
It is recommended that this be broken down into a minimum of 25 minutes of activity each day (1).
However, research shows that activity lasting less than 25 minutes still carries benefits to your health and wellbeing.
In fact, just 5-10 minutes of high-intensity, or 15 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, each day can significantly contribute to your overall health (20).
There are simple activities that you can incorporate into your daily routine that will help to achieve this, without having to dedicate hours in the gym.
• Consider taking the stairs instead of elevators
• Going for a brisk walk on your break
• Quick bursts of body weight exercises like
star jumps, push-ups, and squats.
These activities not only carry great benefits for your health and wellbeing, but can also act as a fatigue management tool. Brief bursts of activity during shift can help to improve alertness and reduce feelings of fatigue and sleepiness at work (11,12).
” I was never a sporty person and didn’t exercise very often before starting shiftwork. With the changing schedules and fatigue, I had become really sedentary, and didn’t feel great about my fitness or my body. The main thing I did to overcome a lot of the negativity around exercise was to break it down into tiny amounts – just 10 minutes after work, or 5 minutes during my break. I found those small chunks a lot more manageable, and it’s become easier to build my fitness up over time.”
- Jessie, 19, young shiftworker.