Average Briton stops exercising at the age of 34

The average Brit stops exercising at the age of 34, a study by healthcare provider Benenden Healthcare has suggested, with men quitting earlier than women.

The report, which investigated the country’s exercise habits, found that on average, men give up their regular exercise regime five years earlier than women, who continue to exercise until they are at least 37.

While the average person stops exercising at 34, there are nevertheless plenty of people who carry on well into retirement, with around 3.6 million people over the age of 65 continuing to exercise more than three times a week.

Jakki Stubbington of Benenden Healthcare said: “As we get older we tend to exercise less, either as result of other commitments such as work or through sheer lack of motivation.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

Email(Required)

OptOut

From time to time, we will send you emails about selected products, events and services from Personnel Today - but you can choose to opt-out at any time. If you do not wish to receive these emails, please tick this box.

Name

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

“As an essential part of a healthy lifestyle, exercise should be at the top of our list of priorities, not at the bottom.This doesn’t mean that you have to be lifting heavy weights in the gym every day, but simply following the government guidelines of around 150 minutes of light exercise a week.”

At 49, those in Yorkshire and Humberside had the highest average age at which people gave up exercise, while those in London had the lowest average age at just 30 years old, the survey added.