Guidelines from the American College of Sports and Medicine (ACSM) say that adults should aim to get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week. This is the most widely recommended goal, even for people with chronic illnesses.
That amount probably seems overwhelming to you, especially if you have chronic pain. The good news is that a little bit of physical activity - even 10 minutes a day - can make a difference for symptoms like pain, sleep, and mood.
The key is to start slowly and with activities that are easy for you to do. Many people find that doing several short activities per day is easier than one long stretch of activity. You may want to start with a 5-minute gentle walk two or three times per day to slowly build up muscle strength and cardiovascular capacity. Over time, you can gradually increase your activity and start to do longer stretches of activity and more intense activities.
Your muscles may have become deconditioned, or weaker, due to inactivity, but this may lessen as your body adjusts to being active again. Remember that over-exercising can also lead to more pain or fatigue, so it is important to make a plan to slowly increase physical activity over time.