What are physically active micropatterns?
A burst of vigorous intensity physical activity lasting up to one minute (vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity, or VILPA) or a longer burst of moderate-to-vigorous intensity (MV-ILPA) lasting up to three minutes.
How can I measure intensity?
Take the cues from your body: breathing, heart rate and even whether or not you can sing while performing the activity are good indicators.
- During light intensity activities, you are able to talk or sing comfortably.
- Moderate intensity typically makes breathing slightly faster and would make you feel warmer if performed for more than a few minutes. You can talk but cannot sing.
- Vigorous intensity makes breathing much faster and most people will also feel an increase in heart rate if the activity is sustained for more than 20 seconds. You can only speak a few words. If the activity is truly vigorous, the large majority of middle-aged and older adults could not sustain it continuously past one to two minutes at a time.
MODERATE AND VIGOROUS INTENSITY EXAMPLES
One-minute bursts of vigorous intensity physical activity lasting up to one minute (VILPA):
Running for the bus or train.
Power walking while doing errands.
Climbing stairs.
Carrying shopping bags or a back pack weighing at least 10% of your body weight.
Walking uphill.
Playing high-energy games with children or pets.
Heavy household chores or gardening.
Three-minute bursts of moderate-intensity (M-VILPA) activities at a lower intensity:
Brisk walking.
Household chores.
Carrying shopping bags or a backpack weighing around 5% of your bodyweight.
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ABOUT THIS STUDY
This study was conducted using data from the UK Biobank, a large-scale biomedical database and research resource containing anonymised genetic, lifestyle and health information from 500,000 UK participants.
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