Advise that to prevent obesity, most people may need to do 45–60 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a day, particularly if they do not reduce their energy intake. Advise people who have been obese and have lost weight that they may need to do 60–90 minutes of activity a day to avoid regaining weight.

Encourage adults to build up to the recommended activity levels for weight maintenance, using a managed approach with agreed goals.

Recommend types of physical activity, including:

• activities that can be incorporated into everyday life, such as brisk walking, gardening or cycling (see the NICE pathway on walking and cycling)

• supervised exercise programmes

• other activities, such as swimming, aiming to walk a certain number of steps each day, or stair climbing.

Take into account the person's current physical fitness and ability for all activities. Encourage people to also reduce the amount of time they spend inactive, such as watching television, using a computer or playing video games.

Interventions

Interventions to increase physical activity should:

• focus on activities that fit easily into people's everyday life (such as walking)​

• be tailored to people's individual preferences and circumstances​

• aim to improve people's belief in their ability to change (for example, by verbal persuasion, modelling exercise behaviour and discussing positive effects)

Ongoing support (including appropriate written materials) should be given in person or by phone, mail or internet.

Interventions to improve diet (and reduce energy intake) should be multicomponent (for example, including dietary modification, targeted advice, family involvement and goal setting), be tailored to the individual and provide ongoing support.

Interventions may include promotional, awareness-raising activities, but these should be part of a long-term, multicomponent intervention rather than one-off activities (and should be accompanied by targeted follow-up with different population groups).

Discuss weight, diet and activity with people at times when weight gain is more likely, such as during and after pregnancy, the menopause and while stopping smoking.

Actively involve parents and carers in all actions aimed at preventing excess weight gain and improving diet (including reducing energy intake) and activity levels in children and young people.