Browse the evidence

Athletes should consume 6–10 g/kg/day of carbohydrates to maintain blood glucose and replenish muscle glycogen, with the specific amount depending on total daily energy expenditure and exercise type.

If you are training hard, eat 6 to 10 grams of carbohydrates for every kilogram of your body weight each day. This might mean eating more pasta, rice, fruits, and vegetables than you are used to. This fuel is necessary to keep your blood sugar stable during exercise and to refill your muscles' energy stores (glycogen) so you can perform and recover effectively.

Protein intake for endurance and strength-trained athletes should range from 1.2 to 1.7 g/kg/day, which can generally be met through diet alone without supplements.

Aim for 1.2 to 1.7 grams of protein for every kilogram of your body weight each day. You can likely get this from regular foods like meat, fish, eggs, dairy, beans, and nuts without needing protein powders or supplements. Ensure you are also eating enough total calories and carbohydrates to support your training.

Dehydration decreases exercise performance, so athletes should consume adequate fluids before, during, and after exercise to prevent dehydration and maintain performance.

Stay hydrated by drinking fluids before, during, and after exercise. After exercise, drink 16-24 ounces of fluid for every pound of body weight you lost during the activity. Don't overdrink; follow your sweat rate to avoid hyponatremia.

Structured aerobic exercise of at least 150 minutes per week significantly improves glycemic control (HbA1c) in individuals with type 2 diabetes, independent of weight loss.

To manage your blood sugar, aim for 150 minutes of moderate exercise (like brisk walking) or 90 minutes of vigorous exercise (like jogging) every week. Spread this out over at least 3 days, and try not to go more than 2 days in a row without moving. This improves your blood sugar directly, even if your weight doesn't change.

Lifestyle interventions combining at least 150 minutes per week of physical activity with modest energy restriction reduce the risk of progression from impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) to type 2 diabetes by 58%.

If you have prediabetes, aim for 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week and try to lose 5-7% of your body weight through diet. This combination cuts your risk of developing full-blown diabetes by more than half.

Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation reduces all-cause mortality by 27% and cardiac mortality by 31% in patients with coronary heart disease compared to usual care.

If you have coronary heart disease, participating in a supervised exercise-based rehabilitation program significantly lowers your risk of dying from heart-related causes. This benefit is seen even with exercise-only programs, without needing additional educational or psychological components. Consult your doctor to find a suitable program.

Postoperative rehabilitation after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) should be structured into a prehabilitation phase and three criterion-based postoperative phases (impairment-based, sport-specific, return to play) lasting 9–12 months, guided by objective strength, hop, and movement quality tests rather than time-based protocols.

Do not rely on time alone to decide when you can return to sport after ACL surgery. Your rehab should last 9-12 months and be divided into phases. You only move to the next phase (like sport-specific training) when you pass specific tests for strength, hopping ability, and movement quality, not just when you feel ready. This objective approach helps ensure you actually return to your pre-injury level and reduces the risk of tearing the ligament again.

Combined behavioral interventions targeting both diet and physical activity produce small but statistically significant improvements in long-term weight loss maintenance compared to control conditions.

To maintain weight loss, you cannot rely on initial effort alone. You must engage in ongoing behavioral strategies that combine dietary management and physical activity. Simple diet or exercise alone is not enough for long-term maintenance; a comprehensive behavioral approach is required.

Orlistat 120 mg taken three times daily, when combined with behavioral interventions, significantly enhances weight loss maintenance compared to placebo.

If behavioral methods alone are insufficient for maintaining weight loss, adding Orlistat 120 mg three times daily can provide a small but significant additional benefit. This is superior to lower doses (30/60 mg). Be aware of increased gastrointestinal side effects.

Land-based therapeutic exercise significantly reduces knee pain and improves physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis, with effects sustained for at least two to six months post-treatment.

If you have knee osteoarthritis, engaging in land-based exercise programs (such as strengthening, functional training, or aerobic activities) is a highly effective, first-line treatment to reduce pain and improve physical function. The benefits are moderate and comparable to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, with effects lasting at least two to six months after stopping the program. It is safe, with no serious adverse events reported in the reviewed trials.

Remote behavioral weight-loss interventions (telephone, web, email) achieve clinically significant weight loss (mean -4.6 kg) comparable to in-person support (-5.1 kg) over 24 months in primary care settings.

You can lose significant weight using remote tools (phone, web, email) without needing to attend in-person group sessions. The study showed that a remote program resulted in nearly the same weight loss (-4.6 kg) as an in-person program (-5.1 kg) over two years. To succeed, you must log in weekly, use the provided tracking tools, and respond to automated reminders.

Lifestyle interventions, specifically moderate-intensity physical activity for at least 150 minutes per week and caloric restriction, significantly reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in individuals with prediabetes.

To prevent type 2 diabetes, you need to combine diet and exercise. Aim to lose about 7% of your body weight (or reach a BMI of 24) by cutting 400-500 calories from your daily intake and limiting saturated fats. Add at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week. Stick with it by getting regular check-ins and support to keep these habits long-term.

Structured lifestyle interventions combining physical activity and modest weight loss can lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by up to 58% in high-risk populations.

If you are at high risk for diabetes (e.g., prediabetes), combining regular moderate-to-vigorous exercise (at least 2.5 hours/week) with modest weight loss can reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by up to 58%. You don't need to lose a huge amount of weight; even modest changes combined with activity make a significant difference.

A 12-month home-based diet and exercise intervention significantly reduces the rate of functional decline in older, overweight long-term cancer survivors compared to no intervention.

For older cancer survivors, a structured home-based program combining regular moderate exercise (both strength and endurance) with dietary improvements can help maintain physical function. The key is consistency and support, which can be achieved through remote counseling and mailed materials without needing to visit a clinic.

The DASH combination diet (rich in fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy; reduced in saturated fat, total fat, and cholesterol) significantly lowers systolic and diastolic blood pressure in adults with high-normal blood pressure and stage 1 hypertension, independent of sodium reduction or weight loss.

Adopt the DASH diet pattern for 8 weeks: eat more fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy, while reducing saturated fats and cholesterol. Keep your weight and salt intake the same as usual. This specific combination has been proven to lower blood pressure significantly, especially if you are African American or have hypertension.

Participation in exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) for patients with coronary heart disease significantly reduces cardiovascular mortality, recurrent myocardial infarction, and hospitalizations compared to no-exercise control, while also improving health-related quality of life.

If you have coronary heart disease, participating in a structured exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation program is one of the most effective steps you can take to lower your risk of dying from heart causes, having another heart attack, or being hospitalized. You do not need to be an elite athlete; programs vary in intensity and setting (home or center), but the key is consistent, supervised physical activity combined with education. This is recommended alongside modern medical treatments, not instead of them.

Structured cardiac rehabilitation, centered on physical activity counseling and exercise training, is a Class I recommended, cost-effective intervention for secondary prevention in patients with coronary artery disease and chronic heart failure, significantly reducing recurrent hospitalizations and improving survival.

If you have heart disease, do not just rely on medication. You must engage in a structured cardiac rehabilitation program. This involves regular aerobic exercise (like brisk walking for 30-60 minutes, most days) and resistance training (2-3 times a week). Start slowly, get medical clearance, and consider joining a supervised group program to stay motivated and safe. This is not optional; it is a Class I recommendation to save your life and reduce hospital visits.

Daily physical activity of 30-60 minutes, including aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercises, is recommended to prevent and treat metabolic syndrome.

Aim for 30-60 minutes of daily physical activity, combining aerobic exercise and muscle strengthening. You can break this into 10-minute blocks throughout the day. This is essential for preventing and treating metabolic syndrome.

A brief, opportunistic physician intervention (30 seconds) that includes referral to a behavioral weight loss program, ensuring an appointment is made, and offering follow-up, results in significantly greater weight loss compared to advice alone in obese primary care patients.

If you are obese, ask your doctor for a referral to a free, NHS-funded behavioral weight loss program. If they don't offer it, request one. Ensure you get an appointment booked. This structured support leads to significantly more weight loss than just being told to lose weight.

A home-based strength and balance retraining exercise program significantly reduces the rate of subsequent falls in community-dwelling older adults (aged ≥70) who have already experienced a fall, compared to usual geriatric care.

If you are over 70 and have fallen recently, ask your doctor about the Otago Exercise Program. It is a home-based routine of strength and balance exercises that you do 3 times a week, guided by a physical therapist. This specific program has been proven to significantly reduce the number of falls you might experience in the next year compared to standard medical care alone.

A 12-week semiautomated telecoaching intervention using a step counter and smartphone application significantly increases daily physical activity (steps and moderate intensity time) in patients with COPD compared to usual care.

If you have COPD, using a step counter and a smartphone app that sets and adjusts your daily step goals automatically can significantly increase your physical activity. This program works by providing feedback and coaching, helping you stay active even if you have severe symptoms. It is effective across different disease severities and can be used alongside your usual medical care.

Exercise programs (strength, aerobic, flexibility, or neuromotor) of adequate dosage with progression tailored to physical function improve pain and function in hip and knee osteoarthritis.

Start an exercise program tailored to your current ability. It can include strength, aerobic, flexibility, or neuromotor exercises. Progress gradually. Exercise is safe and effective for reducing pain and improving function in osteoarthritis.

Habitual endurance running significantly improves key biomedical health indices in physically inactive adults, specifically reducing body mass, body fat, resting heart rate, and triglycerides, while increasing VO2max and HDL cholesterol.

If you are currently inactive but healthy, starting a running routine of about 3-4 sessions per week, totaling roughly 2.3 hours, at a moderate intensity (60-90% of your max heart rate) will significantly improve your health. Over a year, you can expect to lose about 3.3 kg of body mass, reduce body fat, lower your resting heart rate, and improve your cardiovascular fitness (VO2max) and healthy cholesterol levels (HDL). You do not need to combine this with strict dieting to see these independent benefits.

A 12-week supervised combination of balance and strength/power training improves balance, strength/power, body composition, cognitive function, psychosocial well-being, and falls self-efficacy in healthy older adults (65-80 years).

If you are over 65, a structured exercise program focusing on both balance (standing on one leg, walking on uneven surfaces) and strength (chair stands, jumping) performed three times a week for 12 weeks is expected to reduce your fall risk and improve your daily functioning. Supervision is recommended for the best results.