Working out just 1 or 2 days per week can significantly lower your risk of death from heart disease and cancer, as long as you get in the recommended number of minutes, researchers say.
Too often, life gets in the way of exercise. Work, family and sleep take over during the week.
Now, a new study finds catching up on the weekends may be a healthy solution.
The senior researcher says, “As long as you get 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week — whether packed into one to two days or spread out — you can significantly reduce your risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, cancer or other causes.”
The study included more than 93,000 people in the UK who wore wrist devices to track their physical activity. The researchers divided them into three groups – weekend warriors, steady exercisers and inactive people – and looked at their risk of premature death.
The benefits were significant for both weekend warriors and steady exercisers, according to the results.
Weekend warriors had an overall 32% lower risk of death, a 31% lower risk of death from heart disease and a 21% lower risk of cancer compared to inactive people.
Steady exercisers had an overall 26% lower risk of death, a 24% lower risk of death from heart disease and a 13% lower risk of death from cancer.
The authors say these findings provide “reassuring evidence” that even sporadic physical activity can have lasting health benefits.
Current U.S. guidelines recommend at least 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise or 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.
Source: Journal of the American Heart Association
Author Affiliations: Southern Medical University
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