Summary: Brief, vigorous activity bouts as short as two minutes—accumulating about 15–16 minutes per week—were linked to meaningful reductions in risk: roughly an 18% lower risk of death and a 15% lower risk of cardiovascular disease. Increasing vigorous activity to about 53 minutes per week corresponded to a roughly 36% lower risk of death from any cause.
Source: European Society of Cardiology
Short bursts of vigorous activity — two minutes at a time — adding up to roughly 15 minutes per week are associated with lower mortality and disease risk, according to research published today in European Heart Journal, the peer-reviewed journal of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).
“These findings suggest that frequently accumulating short, vigorous activity throughout the week can contribute to a longer life,” said lead author Dr. Matthew N. Ahmadi of the University of Sydney. “Because lack of time is one of the most commonly reported barriers to regular exercise, fitting short bursts of intensity into a busy day may be a practical and effective strategy.”
A companion study published in the same journal found that, for a given total amount of activity, exercising at a higher intensity was linked to a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease.
“Our results show that not only the total amount, but also the intensity of activity matters for heart health,” said Dr. Paddy C. Dempsey (University of Leicester, University of Cambridge, and Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute). “Raising the intensity of activities you already do—for example walking faster to the bus stop or doing household chores more briskly—can meaningfully reduce cardiovascular risk.”
Both studies analyzed data from middle-aged adults (40–69 years) in the UK Biobank who wore a wrist accelerometer for seven consecutive days. This objective measurement captures motion and short, sporadic bouts of different intensities across daily life.
The first study included 71,893 adults with no prior cardiovascular disease or cancer (median age 62.5 years; 56% women). Researchers measured weekly minutes of vigorous physical activity (VPA) and the frequency of short bouts (≤2 minutes). Participants were followed for an average of 6.9 years, and analyses excluded events occurring in the first year to reduce reverse causation.
Risk of all examined outcomes—overall death, cardiovascular mortality, cancer mortality, and incidence of cardiovascular disease and cancer—fell as both the volume and frequency of vigorous activity increased. Notably, benefits appeared with relatively small amounts of vigorous activity. For those with no VPA, the adjusted five-year absolute mortality risk was about 4%. Having under 10 minutes of weekly VPA halved that risk to about 2%, while 60 minutes or more corresponded to about 1%.
Compared with roughly two minutes of vigorous activity per week, accumulating about 15 minutes weekly was associated with an 18% lower risk of death and a 15% lower risk of cardiovascular disease. Around 12 minutes per week was linked to a 17% lower risk of cancer. The study estimated an “optimal” VPA dose near 53 minutes per week, associated with an approximately 36% lower all-cause mortality risk versus very low VPA.
Regarding frequency, short vigorous bouts averaged four times per day was associated with a 27% lower risk of death. Even modest weekly frequency—about ten short bouts per week—was associated with 16–17% lower risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer, respectively.
The second study analyzed 88,412 adults without cardiovascular disease (median follow-up 6.8 years; average age ~62; 58% women). Using wrist accelerometer data, investigators estimated total physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE) and the share of that energy coming from moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (%MVPA). They then evaluated how total volume and intensity related to incident cardiovascular disease (ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease).
Both higher total activity energy expenditure and a greater proportion of moderate-to-vigorous activity were associated with lower rates of new cardiovascular disease. Importantly, when overall activity volume was held constant, increasing the share of activity at moderate-to-vigorous intensity produced larger reductions in cardiovascular disease risk. For example, when moderate-to-vigorous activity comprised 20% rather than 10% of total activity energy expenditure—approximately equivalent to turning a 14-minute easy stroll into a brisk 7-minute effort—cardiovascular disease rates were about 14% lower.
Dr. Dempsey emphasized that both increasing total activity and raising intensity are valid, complementary strategies for reducing cardiovascular risk, and that intensifying everyday movements can be an accessible way for many people to improve heart health.
About this exercise and longevity research news
Author: Justine Pinot
Source: European Society of Cardiology
Contact: Justine Pinot – European Society of Cardiology
Image: The image is in the public domain
Original Research: Ahmadi MN et al., “Vigorous physical activity, incident heart disease, and cancer: how little is enough?” European Heart Journal. (Open access)
Original Research: Dempsey PC et al., “Physical activity volume, intensity and incident cardiovascular disease.” European Heart Journal. (Open access)
Abstract — Vigorous physical activity, incident heart disease, and cancer: how little is enough?
Aims: Vigorous physical activity (VPA) is a time-efficient way to reach recommended activity levels, but the minimal and optimal weekly amounts for reducing mortality and disease are not well established.
Methods and results: In 71,893 UK Biobank participants (median age 62.5 years; 55.9% female) with wrist accelerometer data, investigators measured VPA minutes per week and frequency of short VPA bouts (≤2 minutes). After excluding events in the first year and with a mean follow-up of about 5.9 years, the adjusted five-year absolute mortality risk fell from 4.17% for no VPA to 2.12% for >0–<10 min/week, 1.78% for 10–<30 min, 1.47% for 30–<60 min, and 1.10% for ≥60 min. The estimated optimal dose was ~53.6 min/week. A minimal effective volume near 15–20 min/week was associated with 16–40% lower mortality hazard ratios, with further reductions up to about 50–57 min/week. Short-bout frequency also showed inverse associations with cardiovascular mortality.
Conclusion: Relatively modest amounts of vigorous activity, often accumulated in short bouts across the week, were associated with substantially lower risks of death and disease.
Abstract — Physical activity volume, intensity and incident cardiovascular disease
Aims: This study explored how total physical activity volume and the intensity mix (the share coming from moderate-to-vigorous activity) interact to influence cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk.
Methods and results: Using accelerometer data from 88,412 adults without prevalent CVD, researchers estimated total activity energy expenditure (PAEE) and the percentage of PAEE from moderate-to-vigorous activity (%MVPA). Over a median 6.8 years, there were 4,068 incident CVD events. Higher PAEE and higher %MVPA (adjusted for PAEE) were both associated with lower incident CVD rates. For the same total PAEE, increasing the %MVPA produced greater reductions in CVD risk—illustrated by a 14% lower rate when %MVPA rose from 10% to 20% for a given PAEE level. The lowest CVD rates occurred when both PAEE and %MVPA were higher.
Conclusion: Reductions in cardiovascular disease risk may be achieved through higher total activity and through a greater share of that activity being moderate-to-vigorous. Both strategies are practical options that can suit different people’s routines and preferences.