Exercise, an active lifestyle, and obesity: making the exercise prescription work.

An active lifestyle can play an important role in helping overweight patients both lose and manage their weight. The traditional exercise prescription of regular bouts of continuous vigorous exercise may need to be modified to increase rates of adoption and compliance. Recent data suggest that accumulating several short bouts of moderate to vigorous activity each day may improve adherence to the program. Understanding the barriers to activity that overweight people face-such as fear or embarrassment-can help physicians prescribe appropriate exercise routines, which may ultimately help them with better weight management.