Even one minute of vigorous exercise a day can lower your risk of an early death, a new study has found.
Research, led by University of Sydney academic Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, may provide some solace for the exercise averse, after it found just one minute of vigorous “incidental activity” a day - such as a quick burst up stairs, chasing after your children or heaving heavy shopping bags - can lengthen your life.
The study looked at nearly 3,300 Americans with an average age of about 51, who reported doing no regular structured exercised. Asked to wear trackers on their wrists to log their movements, those who did even a minute of vigorous activity a day had a 38 per cent lower risk of dying over the following six years compared to those who did none. This exertion could be split into half a dozen 10 second bursts.
The research concluded: “Short bursts of intermittent vigorous physical activity were associated with meaningful health benefits in a nationally representative sample of US adults.”
Researchers caveated that activity intensity might be misclassified due to the limitations of wrist-worn trackers, meaning the intensity of activities such as walking uphill or carrying objects might not be captured accurately. This latest study has also yet to be peer reviewed.
But before people start cancelling their gym memberships, one minute of vigorous activity is no trade for the benefits that regular exercise can have on your body and brain. The NHS recommends adults aged 19 to 64 should try to complete at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity a week.
There is a growing body of evidence that shows short bursts of exercise can be beneficial, with Professor Stamatakis previously suggesting a total of 4.5 minutes of vigorous activity during daily tasks could reduce the risk of some cancers by up to 32 per cent.
Researchers from the University of Sydney previously coined the phrase Vigorous Intermittent Lifestyle Physical Activity, or VILPA for short, to describe these short bursts of activity we already have integrated in our daily lives, such as vigorous housework, carrying heavy shopping, bursts of power walking or even playing high-energy games with your children.
“VILPA is a bit like applying the principles of High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) to your everyday life,” said Professor Stamatakis in a previous study.
He said adults who don’t exercise are at increased risk of developing certain cancers like breast, endometrial or colon, but until recently the impact of less structured forms of vigorous physical activity was unable to be measured.
“We know the majority of middle-aged people don’t regularly exercise which puts them at increased cancer risk but it’s only through the advent of wearable technology like activity trackers that we are able to look at the impact of short bursts of incidental physical activity done as part of daily living,” he said.
