Language selection

Government of Canada / Gouvernement du Canada

Search

Physical activity: For health professionals

On this page

Physical activity in Canada

Physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour levels remain high in Canada.

Physical inactivity is an important public health concern for people of all ages. The World Health Organization identifies physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality. It is also linked to several chronic diseases, including:

It is recommended that children and youth engage in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity for at least 60 minutes each day.

For adults, the recommendation is 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each week.

Less than half of adults, children and youth in Canada meet the recommended guidelines.

Males are more likely to meet the guidelines than females in every age group.

Young adults aged 18 to 34 years are most likely to be active. This rate declines with age and is the lowest among those aged 65 years and older in Canada.

Learn more:

Health inequalities

Health inequalities refer to differences in health status experienced by different groups in society. This is related to physical activity because physical activity levels vary between and within different population groups in Canada.

Lower rates of physical activity are especially pronounced for:

Common barriers to being physically active include time, family commitments and fatigue. In addition, social and economic factors impact people’s ability to engage in physical activity. 

Health experts recognize that our ability to change our behaviour and health habits, including being physically active, is closely tied to several social determinants of health.

Social determinants of heath are interrelated social, political and economic circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live, work and age. We can influence some of these factors, but not all. Factors can include:

Learn more:

COVID-19 pandemic and physical activity

The COVID-19 pandemic greatly impacted the physical activity habits of people in Canada. Certain population groups were disproportionately affected by pandemic restrictions and closures, including:

  • children and youth
  • people with lower incomes
  • people without access to safe and accessible outdoor spaces

As new data becomes available, we will be able to better understand long-term impacts of the pandemic on physical activity levels and leverage these data for future programming.

Learn more:

Persons with disabilities and physical activity

More than 1 in 4 Canadians aged 15 years and over have a disability, including physical, mental, intellectual, genetic, learning, communication or sensory impairments. People living with disabilities are disproportionately affected by barriers to engage in physical activity. Some of the most common barriers can include:

  • social exclusion
  • attitudinal norms
  • built environment features, including accessibility

Barriers can vary depending on the type of disability. Types of disability can include physical or motor, sensory, intellectual or psychosocial.

Physical activity plays an important role in maintaining health, well-being and quality of life for everyone, including persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities should consult a health professional to determine what types of physical activity are most suitable and safe.

 Learn more:

Surveillance and research

Surveillance

The Government of Canada monitors physical activity levels in Canada in various ways.

Physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep indicators

The physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep (PASS) indicators provide important surveillance information on physical activity, sedentary and sleep behaviours for people in Canada and factors that influence them.

The PASS indicators include unique indicators and their measures grouped by movement behaviour (24-hour movement, physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep) and 3 key domains:

  1. individual
  2. built/society environment
  3. family and social environment

Learn more:

Canadian Risk Factor Atlas

The Canadian Risk Factor Atlas (CRFA) is an interactive database that provides insights into the prevalence of key chronic disease risk factors across Canada. It presents data through maps and graphs, allowing users to explore age- and sex-specific trends by sociodemographic characteristics and geographic regions.

The CRFA uses a common risk factor approach to monitor changes in major chronic disease risk factors, including physical inactivity, recreational screen time, sedentary transportation, smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, as well as obesity.

The CRFA presents data in the form of maps and trends overtime.

Learn more:

Canadian Community Health Survey

The Canadian Community Health Survey collects self-reported health information annually, including information on:

  • health status
  • health care utilization
  • health determinants for the Canadian population

Learn more:

Canadian Health Measures Survey  

The Canadian Health Measures Survey is a comprehensive health survey conducted in Canada. It collects information through interviews and direct measures, including the use of activity monitors to collect information on physical activity.

Learn more:

Research

The Government of Canada conducts a wide range of research on physical activity and related areas to generate knowledge, inform public health action, advance evidence-based policy and practice across Canada.

Physical activity has many intersections with other topics, including:

Advancing research on physical activity requires interdisciplinary approaches and collaboration between:

Learn more:

Canadian Institute of Health Research

Canadian Space Agency

Public Health Agency of Canada

Sport Canada

Statistics Canada

Movement guidelines

Canada’s 24-Hour Movement Guidelines

With funding from the Government of Canada, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology, together with other experts and stakeholders, developed movement guidelines for Canadians of all ages. These guidelines cover the optimal amounts of physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep, as well as the best combination of these behaviours. Known as Canada’s 24-Hour Movement Guidelines, they provide clear guidance on what a healthy day looks like for people in Canada. The guidelines include:

Meeting the recommended physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep levels is key to:

For example, adults who met all 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep levels had more favourable body mass index, waist circumference, aerobic fitness scores (cardiovascular and endurance fitness that is promoted through activities like running, walking, cycling and swimming).

Learn more:

International movement guidelines

The World Health Organization (WHO) provides global leadership on physical activity and is responsible for developing evidence-based guidelines and recommendations on effective policy actions.

These guidelines provides evidence-based public health recommendations for:

The recommendations detail the amount of physical activity (frequency, intensity and duration) required to offer significant health benefits and to reduce health risks. The guidelines highlight that:

WHO Global Guidelines on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour

In addition to global guidelines, many countries have adopted their own physical activity guidelines. 

The Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018 to 2030 is a global roadmap developed by the WHO to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviours through 20 evidence-based policy actions across 4 areas.

WHO Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018 to 2030

By monitoring physical activity behaviours and policy implementation, the WHO tracks progress using their guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour towards achieving the target of a 15% relative reduction in the global prevalence of physical inactivity in adolescents and adults by 2030.

Other resources from the WHO include:

Related links

Page details

2026-05-27