Get your Recommended Exercise Playing Pickleball!

Perhaps you’ve heard it said that, “sitting is the new smoking.” Simply said, physical inactivity (a sedentary lifestyle) can have disastrous implications on your health — even comparable to that of smoking. Yikes!

Physical Activity Lowers Risk for High Blood Pressure & Stroke, Improves Aerobic Fitness…  and More!

With approximately 1 in 2 adults living with a chronic disease – and only approximately only 50% of adults getting the physical activity they need to help reduce and prevent chronic diseases – it’s imperative that individuals stay physically active. Physical activity — even just walking — is, perhaps, the single-most important thing you can do to improve your health. Physical activity lowers your risk for high blood pressure and stroke, improves aerobic fitness, mental health, and cognitive function, and helps reduce/prevent arthritis symptoms, stress, and weight gain.

According to Dr. Tom Frieden, former CDC Director, “physical activity is the closest thing we have to a wonder drug.”

Get Moving — The CDC’s Recommended Amount of Exercise

According to the CDC, “for substantial health benefits, adults should do at least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) a week of moderate-intensity, or 75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity. For additional and more extensive health benefits, adults should increase their aerobic physical activity to 300 minutes (5 hours) a week of moderate-intensity, or 150 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.”

Play Pickleball to Reap the Health Benefits — It’s More Fun than Walking!

Although walking — and tracking steps — may be an effective option to get one’s daily/weekly recommended exercise, it may also be, well, boring!!! And as a result, it is difficult to make sustainable lifestyle modifications. It is, therefore, critical to find something you love to do — while at the same time reaping the benefits of the exercise it provides.

For me, playing pickleball is a great way to get the physical activity needed to obtain health benefits. With each game of pickleball lasting about 10 minutes and resulting in approximately 500-750 steps – or the equivalent of about a ¼ mile – it is an extraordinarily effective (and fun) activity to get individuals off the couch, moving and getting the recommended exercise. And if you’re like most, you know that you don’t just play a game or two of pickleball. Instead, you’re likely to be on the court for an hour or two — all while getting much needed physical activity that will improve your health.

Looking for something Unique and Fun to Complement your Existing (or Non-Existent) Employee Wellness Programming that will Generate Engagement and Ignite Positive Lifestyle Modifications in the Lives of your Employees?

Pickleball may very well be the answer. Yes, pickleball! Invented in 1965, pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in America. A combination of tennis, ping-pong, and badminton, pickleball is played with a paddle and wiffle ball on a court approximately one-fourth the size of a tennis court. The game of pickleball is great for all ages and skill levels and only takes a short amount of time to learn. Perhaps most importantly, it gets employees moving as each game of pickleball results in approximately 500-750 steps – or the equivalent of about a ¼ mile. Pickleball is also a great stress-reliever and helps build employee morale.  

Pickleball is a unique and effective employee wellness programming option that will encourage healthier lifestyle behaviors that will ultimately enhance employee productivity and performance, all while helping to create a culture of wellness that permeates throughout the entire organization.

Company Picnics, Pickleball, Employee Appreciation Events & More

Pickleball is a great activity for your company picnic, employee appreciation event, health & fitness week, wellness day/week, team-building event – or as a complement to your existing wellness programming (such as exercise/fitness, stress management and weight loss programs).