ALMOST one in ten people in the North-East have admitted to doing no physical activity.

The British Heart Foundation revealed around 82 per cent of people in the region are unaware of the recommended minimum amount of physical activity needed every week.

And excuses for not exercising regularly ranged from finding it boring, bad weather and no spare time – but almost half of North-Easterners listed laziness as their top reason for not working out.

Physical activity specialist at the British Heart Foundation, Lisa Young, said: “I’m not surprised to learn just how little awareness there is around the recommended minimum amount of exercise people should aim for every week, which is at least 150 minutes of physical activity.

“Physical activity is essential for your heart health and should not be ignored. Not only can keeping fit help reduce your risk of heart disease, it can help you control your weight, reduce blood pressure/cholesterol and improve your mental health.”

The British Heart Foundation is holding a series of events to encourage the North-East to get active and a list of events and how to get involved can be found at bhf.org.uk/events