Karim Khan talks to Steven Blair, professor at the Arnold School of Public Health, South Carolina. Professor Blair discusses the wealth of evidence he’s built up on the benefits of exercise, why physical inactivity is a bigger problem than obesity, and how much and of what we should all be doing.

0.51 Why physical inactivity is a greater health problem than obesity

3.20 Why physical inactivity is an important factor in causing the obesity epidemic

6.18 How the World Health Organisation is waking up to the fact physical inactivity is a major health problem

8.47 The impact of genetic makeup on the benefits gained from physical activity

10.44 The benefits of physical activity in those over 60

11.52 How much and of what sort of exercise should we be doing to get the benefits?

See also:
Physical inactivity: the biggest public health problem of the 21st century
Relationship between low cardiorespiratory fitness and mortality in normal-weight, overweight, and obese men
Changes in Physical Fitness and All-Cause Mortality
Physical Fitness and All-Cause Mortality
WHO Global status report on noncommunicable diseases 2010
Effects of physical inactivity and obesity on morbidity and mortality: current evidence and research issues
Is physical activity or physical fitness more important in defining health benefits?
How Much Physical Activity is Good for Health?

Steven N. Blair is a Professor in the Departments of Exercise Science and Epidemiology/Biostatistics at the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina. His research focuses on the associations between lifestyle and health. He has published over 480 scientific papers.

Here he discusses a range of issues relating to fitness and health with BJSM editor Karim Khan. He addresses the question ‘Should health policy focus on physical activity rather than obesity?’ which was the subject of a BMJ ‘Head to Head’