This is something we, as physical therapists, preach all the time: exercise helps you live longer. There are vast amounts of studies that prove this! One of the reasons people give as to why they are not able to incorporate physical activity into their daily lives is due to lack of time. We totally get it; with everything opening back up again and life transitioning into its new normal, everyone’s schedule is getting jam-packed with events and obligations.
But what if we told you that there’s a way to work around your busy schedule? A study showed that walking for 105 minutes (1 hour and 45 minutes) a day helps to decrease all-cause mortality rates by > 30% [1]. That sounds great, but in reality, finding 1 hour and 45 minutes to walk during the day may not be feasible. The good news is that increasing the intensity of an exercise can decrease mortality rates by the same amount (>30%) [1]! In fact, a study showed that running for 25 minutes can generate the same amount of beneficial effects as walking for 1 hour and 45 minutes (see the figure) [1]. That’s a big difference!
This study also showed that doing a high-intensity exercise for only 5 minutes, such as running, can decrease mortality rates by ~10%, which is equivalent to walking for 15 minutes (see figure) [1].
We understand that factors can limit us from running such as injuries and other restrictions. Luckily, there are numerous other activities that can be performed that can increase your heart rate and get you moving, such as biking, using the row machine, exercise classes, dancing, etc. Our goal is to encourage people to continue moving on a daily basis and increase the intensity of the workout or activity. As a result, you can help prolong your life by decreasing mortality risk!
Source:
- Wen CP, Wai JP, Tsai MK, Chen CH. Minimal amount of exercise to prolong life: to walk, to run, or just mix it up? J Am Coll Cardiol. 2014 Aug 5;64(5):482-4. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2014.05.026. PMID: 25082582.
