This percentage has remained unchanged since 1995. Survey results show that as soon as Canadians leave their early twenties behind and reach the age of work and family commitments, they become significantly less active.
Women continue to be more inactive than men.
The good news is that physical inactivity is at its lowest level in the 20 years we've been keeping track. This is not the case in other countries. In Canada, physical inactivity decreased from the early 1980s to the mid 1990s before stalling. In her opinion, the commitment of Health Canada and all provinces and territories to work together to reduce sedentary living in Canada by 10 percent over a five-year period between 1998 and 2003 will play a big part in helping to boost participation again. It is not enough to simply tell Canadians they need to be active.