Live well for longer
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Increasing lifespan
The new research involved a large-scale analysis of data from 150,000 adults in the UK, US and Scandinavia.
“It was surprising that very small changes in physical activity of five minutes per day have such a large impact on reducing the risk for premature mortality,” says Ulf Ekelund, lead author of the research and a professor of physical activity and health at the Norwegian School of Sport. The findings reveal the health benefits of doing five minutes of exercise across the whole population rather than on an individual level, he says.
Adults should still strive for the World Health Organization’s recommendation of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week, Ekelund says. But the study shows that those who might struggle to go to the gym or join a sports club, can still benefit from adding more movement into their lives.
Reducing inactivity was also found to be beneficial. Cutting daily sitting time by 30 minutes was linked to a 7% reduction of early death across the population. This is especially important because physical inactivity is a leading cause of chronic disease and an earlier death.
Ekelund says that consistency is key. “Start slow and gradually build up the amount,” he says. The activity should be tailored to the individual’s preferences and ability.”
Exercise snacking
The study builds on many others that show how long-term health benefits from exercise do not require us to radically change our lifestyle. Simply adding movement into our daily life can have an outsized effect.
Muscle strengthening activities have also been shown to be beneficial. One US study found that individuals in their 60s and 70s who combined aerobic exercise with muscle-strengthening activities lived longer and had a lower risk of dying compared to those who did no exercise.
Other recent work shows that “exercise snacking” – which consists of short bursts of activity spread throughout the day – can improve heart health. A large authoritative analysis of existing research found that among older adults, it also helped with muscular endurance. Uptake was high too, with over 82% of participants continuing to take part, most likely because exercise snacking is easy to “integrate into daily routines”, the authors note. (Read more about how short bursts of activity can help you live for longer.)
