Obesity is adding to the economic crisis in California, according to a new study from the California Center for Public Health Advocacy. The report proves that inactivity and excess weight is driving up healthcare costs and slowing workplace productivity, costing the state billions. Read the full story

Now, for some more good news: it looks like physical activity after weight loss surgery may speed recovery.

That’s the word from researchers from The Miriam Hospital’s Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, who found that patients who began a program of regular physical activity after bariatric surgery had better postoperative outcomes than those who stayed inactive.

In the study, which was published online in the Journal of Obesity, more than two thirds of the weight loss surgery patients who went from being inactive before weight loss surgery to highly active a year after their procedure lost more weight than the ones who were still couch potatoes.

On average, the formerly-inactive patients reduced their BMI by two more points, and lost 8% more excess weight, than those who remained inactive after weight loss surgery.

And—here’s a shocker—the patients who became more active after surgery reported better overall health and vitality, and less depression and anxiety compared with those who remained inactive.

So, what is the difference between being “active” and “inactive”?

According to the study, “active” means putting in 200 minutes a week of walking or other physical activity of moderate or vigorous intensity. That breaks down to about 30 minutes a day.

Well, you all know what to do. Get moving, people! Off the couch! Get some physical activity, will ya?