still. Do not imagine yourself in a science fiction movie taking a pill for lunch (satisfying and with all the nutrients) to save time following your session (if you can call it that) of two minutes of fitness. Simplifying the recommendation to do sports in a minimum amount of time capable of substituting and equaling other types of training in profitability is absurd. make no mistake. What two recent studies published in the European Heart Journal have come to show is that increasing the quality of the exercise more compensates spend a lot of time in a low intensity practice. So, if we increase the two variables, we find the true essence of the paradigm of training, also as a preventive habit. The more it is practiced and with greater intensity, the better quality of life we will have.
quality vs quantity
Until now, many studies have shown the effectiveness of exercise as a healthy preventive measure for the development of diseases. However, there were no quantifiable data on the influence of duration and intensity, as independent variables, on that medicinal capacity of the exercise. So, a group of researchers, led by Paddy Dempsey, a researcher at the University of Leicester and the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge, decided to use portable devices with which they were able to record with accurately determined the intensity and duration of movement of 80,000 UK Biobank participants (58% women and mean age 62). The conclusions point out that the total volume of physical activity is closely associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. But, also, that the more intense and vigorous it is, the more the general risk of premature death is reduced.
Professor Tom Yates, researcher participating in the study, explains that the study sought to see if the amount of exercise was really related not only to quality of life, but also to the development of cardiovascular diseases. They did tests increasing the amount of exercise and saw that the results did not have great variations, if they did when increasing the time, the intensity also increased. intensity. “We found that achieving the same total amount of physical activity through higher-intensity activity has a extra benefit substantial”.
The authors of the study do not want their conclusions to be simplified and add that their study supports the idea that every movement counts, since the most important thing is that the population avoids a sedentary lifestyle. Now, his conclusions encourage us to make each of these movements have a marked intention, that they be intense. And that doesn’t mean you have to do efforts impossible for it to be worth it, but raise the demand of your exercises one point. For example, if what suits you is to walkturn your half-hour walk into a brisk walk.
Four minutes a day is enough?
The other recent study, published in the same specialized journal, led by Dr. Matthew N. Ahmadi, from the University of Sydney (Australia), goes a little further and concludes that exercising for short periods of two minutes intensely is related to a lower risk of mortality since it is beneficial, especially for heart health. “The results indicate that the accumulation of vigorous activity in short bursts throughout the week can help us live longer,” says the lead author of the research. “Since lack of time is the most commonly reported barrier to regular physical activity, accumulating small amounts sporadically throughout the day can be a particularly attractive option for busy people.”
In his study, which followed more than 70,000 people for years, a weekly workout of 15 minutes reduced mortality by 15% from any cause and the risk of cancer. But if the practice of exercise reached the 20 minutes, the risk of suffering heart disease decreased by 40%, although the optimal point of exercise as a healthy preventive paradigm would be to reach 50/60 minutes of exercise per week. If we follow the indications to establish brief random gusts throughout the day, it might be concluded that with four minutes of exercise a day from Monday to Friday we might live with less risk of mortality. But is it enough to exercise for just four minutes a day?
On a medical level, the data provided by these studies is very valuable, because there are few practices that can be compared to the practice of exercise in a healthy report. However, if what we are looking for is not only avoiding diseases but also keep fit, we will need more than training like that. Although, as specialists say, the ideal is keep movingeach one within their possibilities, but always with the certainty that exercise is life and the more you practice, the greater the benefits.
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