Every year, ParticipACTION takes the pulse of Canadian physical activity. 

Their bi-annual report card on adult physical fitness is “the most comprehensive assessment of adult physical activity in Canada. It summarizes data from many sources, including the best available peer-reviewed research, to provide the current state of the evidence on 17 indicators or sources of influence.” 

Essentially, it tells us how Canada is doing when it comes to promoting physical activity, and how Canadians are, or aren’t, participating.  

Dr. Jonathon Fowles, Professor of Kinesiology at Acadia and a member of the report card research committee says this research is important because it allows decision makers and people to direct resources and efforts in the right direction. 

“This report is about pushing that next step forward,” he explains. 

Moving Beyond Stagnation 

Unsurprising based on its subtitle (Moving Beyond Stagnation), this year’s report card shows that Canadians aren't moving as much as we should to ensure long, healthy lives. 

It found that just 46% of Canadian adults are meeting recommended physical activity guidelines. And the stagnation is, itself, stagnant; this number hasn’t moved much over time. This shows that there is continuing and even increasing pressures on our time and attention. So, Dr. Fowles says we all need to recognize making room to move as a priority.  

A way to get us out of the rut might just be to focus on little things we can do to get moving. You don’t need to hit the gym three times a week or take up marathon running to take care of your physical health. Even just reducing your sedentary time can provide significant benefits. 

Part of this shift is changing the way we think about physical activity. Dr. Fowles told CBC in an interview that shifting our perspective from “exercise” to “movement” can help. “With new technology, we’ve now picked up that any minute of movement counts towards your health; it doesn’t have to be structured exercise.” 

During his interview with Global News, he says that viewers could even do a few sit-to-stands while they watch the news, and that would be a step in the right direction. A modest 15% improvement in physical activity levels could save a billion dollars per year in Canada in reduced healthcare, absenteeism and chronic disease management costs.  

Whole-society changes are needed 

It isn’t just up to individuals, of course. The report card shows that coordinated efforts across sectors will need to be made for Canadians to meet movement targets. 

In the introduction to the report card, the authors tell us that “a whole-society approach is needed to help adults in Canada make room for more movement in their daily lives and create a healthier, more resilient country.” 

Dr. Fowles says “people are motivated” to get moving, but communities need to support that motivation by having walkable neighbourhoods and creating accessible opportunities for physical activity, like inclusive physical activity classes at the local community centre. 

The recommendations of the report card are to redouble our efforts to make physical activity the easier choice, at work, in our communities, in health care and in leisure time. 

And while there need to be society-wide changes to increase our activity, the benefits will similarly be societal in the form of more productive, healthier and happier people, not to mention less money spent on healthcare. 

“We can all help each other out by being physically active.”