The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans state that adults aged 18 to 64 and those aged 65 and older should aim to get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity every week.
For adults who are unable to meet these guidelines, it is recommended that "they should be as physically active as their abilities and conditions allow."
According to statistics from the 2016 National Health Interview Survey, just 44.9 percent of older adults aged 65 to 74 met the physical activity guidelines last year.
What is more, previous research has shown that older adults spend more than 9 hours of their day sitting down.
The study included the data of 3,141 adults aged 50 and older who participated in the 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
As part of the survey, subjects were required to wear activity trackers during waking hours, and the researchers used these data to calculate how much time each adult spent sedentary.