In 2016, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) introduced the world’s first 24-hour movement guidelines, an integration of recommended levels of physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep. 
According to CSEP CEO Zach Weston (BSc '98, Kinesiology, MSc '01, Kinesiology), only seven per cent of Canadians meet all three guidelines.
According to Statistics Canada, health indicators including obesity, high blood pressure and elevated blood sugar, which contribute to diabetes and cardiovascular disease, show improvements in 10 per cent of the indicators if they achieve one out of the three guidelines.
“The game changer is that for those who meet two of the three 24-hour movement guidelines, they show improvements in 60 per cent of the health indicators,” he says.
The guidelines offer direction for children and youth, adults between the ages of 18-64 and those 65 and older. Following the guidelines is associated with many health benefits, including a lower risk of mortality, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, several cancers, anxiety, depression, dementia and weight gain, in addition to improved bone health, cognition, quality of life and physical function.
“We have a tremendous opportunity to improve the movement behaviours of Canadians,” says Weston. “The challenge in Canada has often been that our health-care system is funding disease treatment; we don’t invest enough in preventive types of services.”
Since the guidelines were published, the United States, Germany, Australia and many other countries have followed the CSEP model, as well as the World Health Organization.
The five-minute commitment
In grade school, Weston excelled in an array of sports, even receiving a Male Athlete of the Year award upon graduation.
However, while out on a bike ride not long afterward, he was hit by a drunk driver and left with a long list of injuries, including a punctured and collapsed lung, a head injury that caused years of vision problems and temporary paralysis from the waist down.
“It completely flipped my world right upside down,” Weston says.
The healing process was long and difficult, involving plenty of physiotherapy, perseverance and hard work over several years. By the time Weston reached the later years of high school, he still couldn’t run the full length of the gym.
“I know it’s hard and there are days where we just don’t feel like doing it. I often say sometimes the hardest exercise you’re going to do is bending over to tie your shoes,” says Weston.
He says making just a five-minute commitment can make all the difference; promise yourself you’ll move your body for just that short period of time.
“If you still feel lousy after five minutes, you can turn around and just go home,” he says. “But more often than not, people will just keep going, because once you’ve started, it’s easier to continue.”
The CSEP movement guidelines note that all types of movement matter and that taking even small steps toward making healthier movement choices throughout the day can make a big impact.
Weston also says a great way to achieve movement behaviour goals is by disguising exercise as fun.
Having worked as a children’s coach throughout his career, Weston enjoys building enthusiasm in young people, exposing them to a positive experience in hopes that the kids would maintain their love of sport as they got older.
“I play hockey. I run. I swim. I windsurf,” Weston says. “Find something you enjoy, and even better if you can enjoy it with others.”
Coming full circle
When Weston arrived at the University of Waterloo for his undergrad studies, he had grandiose dreams of going to med school someday. But having gone through the accident and still in the rehab process, his interest in health science and human movement grew.
“It was a combination of opportunities that were made available to me, from volunteering at the hospital to regional programs and practical courses, co-op experiences and labs. I was not only educated but was given the confidence to go out and add value to the world through work,” Weston says.
During his graduate studies under supervision of the late Dr. Michael Sharratt, Weston studied the lung capacity of cardiac patients and administered firefighter and police officer fitness tests.
He went on to work for the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network via the Ministry of Health, where he was involved in many areas, including cardiology, orthopedics, rehabilitation, chronic disease prevention, physiotherapy and more.
Weston's career came full circle last year when he presented one of his Waterloo mentors, retired Kinesiology instructor Caryl Russell, with the CSEP Professional Standards Program Recognition Award last fall.
It was during his undergraduate studies that Weston was first introduced to CSEP through Russell, who led the CSEP Professional Standards Program in which Weston received his designation as a clinical exercise physiologist.
CSEP has certified more than 5,000 professionals across Canada, including Certified Personal Trainers, high performance specialists and Clinical Exercise Physiologists like Weston. Just last year, CSEP established a new requirement with the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute network that all staff providing services for Canada’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes must be certified through CSEP.
“One of our greatest goals is to influence government decisions in terms of investing in health and prevention, and promotion-related services,” says Weston. “There is no treatment that has the same degree of value and benefit that exercise itself can offer.”
Photo credit: Alex Dekker Photography
