The study found that as little as 3 minutes of vigorous daily activity was associated with a 40% lower risk of premature death in adults, even if they were otherwise inactive at all. .
Ulrik Wisloff, director of the KG Jebsen Center for Exercise in Medicine at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, called the study “excellent.” Although he has studied activity and longevity extensively, he was not involved in any new research.
The results of this growing body of research show that adding a little intensity to our lives can have big benefits for our health without the need for extra equipment, instruction, gym memberships, or time. It is linked with scientific evidence.
The idea that how we move affects our longevity is nothing new. A number of studies have linked regular exercise to increased longevity, including formal public health exercise guidelines that recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week for health and longevity.
However, more focused research suggests that enhancing some of the exercise, definitely increasing heart rate and breathing, amplifies the health benefits. A large 2006 study found that just 30 minutes of vigorous exercise a week reduced the risk of dying from heart disease by about half in men and women compared to sedentary people. Similarly, a study published last year in JAMA Internal Medicine found that people who occasionally pushed themselves during exercise were more likely to die prematurely than others who did the same amount of exercise at a gentler, moderate pace. It was concluded to be approximately 17% lower.
However, both these studies and similar previous studies were based on subjective recall of exercise volume and intensity. They are also exercise studies, which are inherently of interest to people doing or wanting to exercise, which are not representative of the majority of humanity.
“Honestly, most people are allergic to the word ‘exercise,'” said Emmanuel Stamatakis, a professor of physical activity and health studies at the University of Sydney in Australia, who led the new study.
Health Benefits of Rushing Housework and Chasing Toddlers
Acknowledging that stance, he and his colleagues recently began to wonder about the impact of non-exercise activities. If these activities were completed faster, harder, and more vigorously, would people’s health be in trouble?
To find out, researchers turned to the vast amount of data stored in the UK’s Biobank. It contains health records of hundreds of thousands of British men and women, most of whom have been wearing accelerometers to track their daily movements for a week since joining the Biobank. was Scientists have pulled records for 25,241 of these adults from age 40 to her 69.
Scientists then began to analyze their daily activity in detail, judging the intensity of their movements almost every second, based on data such as how fast they walked. Stamatakis said the analysis took him three months of constant computer time.
But in the end, we were able to map short, explosive movements of participants, like when someone ran to a train or chased a toddler. These physical eruptions can last as little as a minute.
However, they were important for mortality. By comparing activity patterns and death records for about seven years after people joined the biobank, men and women who did what scientists called active, intermittent lifestyle physical activity for an average of 4.4 minutes per day , about 30% less likely. More died than those who rarely moved fast.
Just move vigorously a few times a day
Spreading out these short bursts of activity increased the benefits.When people underwent at least three short bouts of exercise a day, each for about a minute, the risk of death was 40% higher than those who did not rush. % decreased. they didn’t exercise. They just paced what they were doing at least three times a day.
Finally, the researchers performed a similar analysis on data from 62,344 men and women in the biobank who exercised, most at moderate pace. The risk of death was lower when managing a few minutes of more vigorous activity most days, whether during deafness or during routine household chores, but almost never as hard.
“There is something about intensity,” Stamatakis said.
To power up your own activities, Stamatakis continued. Try to reach that level of breathlessness 3-4 times a day for 1-2 minutes, preferably while doing what you need to do.
However, this study has limitations. It is relevant and only shows a relationship between vigorous exercise and our longevity, even though other studies have shown that vigorous exercise improves endurance and cardiovascular health more than light exercise. Regardless, it doesn’t tell you why strength is important.
The conclusion of this study is that if you rush household chores now, you may buy yourself time in the years to come.
Have a fitness question? e-mail YourMove@washpost.com I may answer your question in a future column.
