RECORD numbers are ditching couch potato lifestyles and taking up exercise, figures show.
Some 28.6million in England achieved the recommended 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week in the past year.
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A new low of 11.2million were classed as inactive for failing to complete even half an hour a week.
Health chiefs say the fitness revolution has been largely driven by the elderly taking up running and joining gyms.
A greater number of women are also joining fitness centres.
Sport England, a public body that promotes exercise, quizzed 177,876 people aged 16 and over.
The number in England meeting official guidelines has risen by more than a million since 2015 to hit a record high.
Eat later to cut fat
EXERCISING before breakfast burns twice as much fat as training after, a study found.
It may also cut the risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Scientists analysed data on 30 fat men who were put through a six- week training regime.
Half ate before cycling on a stationary bike and half after. Scientists at Bath and Birmingham universities found the eat later group burnt more fat and were “dramatically” healthier.
There has also been a fall of 131,700 in the number classified as inactive over the same period.
The wealthy are more likely to be active than poorer people, and men more than women – although the gap is closing.
There are 506,700 more active adults aged 55 and over and 100,700 fewer inactive in this age group in the past year alone.
Walking remains the most popular activity. Netball is experiencing a revival, with a “diverse audience” of younger and older women attracted by a Back to Netball campaign.
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The most active adults report the highest levels of happiness and the least anxiety.
Sport England chief Tim Hollingsworth said: “Efforts to help more people get active are starting to make a real difference.”
Sport Minister Nigel Adams said: “It is not only good for our physical health but it also boosts our mental wellbeing and makes people happier.”
Lung fat ‘triggers asthma’
By Nick McDermott
OBESITY triggers asthma because of the build up of fat on the lungs, experts believe.
It makes tubby people breathless by restricting oxygen flow, they say.
Scientists believe it is the fatty deposits, rather than the pressure of their excess weight, that increases asthma risk.
Experts at the University of Western Australia in Perth found accumulations of “excess fat” that would limit air flow in the lungs of dead donors.
Dr Peter Noble said “This could partly explain an increase in asthma symptoms.”
Asthma UK said exercise could improve asthma symptoms by boosting lung power.
