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October 13, 2024
If your exercise programme sees you hitting the gym hard on Monday morning, but come Wednesday finds you find yourself slouched on the sofa, all might not be lost.
A new study has found those who managed two and a half hours of exercise on one or two days of the week were just as healthy as others doing the same amount stretched over a longer period.
The Canadian study claims it does not matter how people accumulate their recommended weekly 150 minutes of exercise.
It could also mean those who prefer to go for a long, brisk walk or bike ride at the weekend can make up for sitting around the office all week.
Dr Ian Janssen, of Queen’s University, Toronto, said: ‘The findings indicate it does not matter how adults choose to accumulate their 150 weekly minutes of physical activity.’
Current guidelines recommend adults perform moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) on most or all days of the week for a total of 150 minutes, with no advice for frequency.
The Canadian study claims it does not matter how people accumulate their recommended weekly 150 minutes of exercise.
So Dr Janssen and colleagues attached a motion detector to the waists of 2,324 men and woman aged between 18 and 64.
The tiny electrical accelerometer, about the size of a small package of matches, records how much a person moves every minute.
The adults who met the physical activity advice of more than 150 minutes a week of aerobic activity were divided into those who exercised on five to seven or one to four of the days.
Physical exams and blood tests on the participants then measured their ‘metabolic syndrome’ which indicates risk factors for diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Those who were ‘infrequently active’ were in no greater danger of developing these illnesses than their ‘frequently active’ counterparts, reports Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism.
Dr Janssen said: ‘For instance, someone who did not perform any physical activity on Monday to Friday but was active for 150 minutes over the weekend would obtain the same health benefits from their activity as someone who accumulated 150 minutes of activity over the week by doing 20-25 minutes of activity on a daily basis.
He added: ‘The important message is adults should aim to accumulate at least 150 minutes of weekly physical activity in whatever pattern that works for their schedule.’
Source Mail Online