Don’t have enough time to exercise during the week? Or are you unable to find the motivation to do so? A new study shows that 15 minutes of vigorous exercise per week or just two minutes of vigorous exercise per day is enough. This is good news for those who don’t have free time to do physical activities.
Reduced risk of premature death.
This study appeared in the European Heart Journal. It shows that fifteen minutes per week or two minutes of intensive exercise per day reduces the risk of premature death by 18%.
The new study comes to support the impact of physical activity on our life expectancy.
For the study, researchers strapped activity trackers to the wrists of 71,893 adults with an average age of 62.5 for almost seven years. Five years later, researchers have identified those who have died in the meantime. People who did not engage in physical activity had a 4% risk of death during this period. On the other hand, people who practiced ten minutes of exercise per week saw this risk reduced by half. In total, fifteen minutes of intense physical exercise per week has been shown to reduce the risk of death by 18%.
The more you move, the better!
Of course, the more you exercise, the better. According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization, a “healthy person” gets 150 to 300 minutes of moderate physical exercise on average per week. You can also opt for 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous exercise per week. Research shows that these guidelines reduce the risk of premature death by 21%. Exercising more than the number of minutes listed above? In this case, the benefits in terms of service life are even greater.
The benefits of sport for your brain.
More mental resilience.
When exercise is done at high intensity, the body develops physically, but also mentally, as it “adapts” to new challenges and learns to handle more load and stress. On training days, overall mental performance is better than on rest days. Memory seems to improve as well as coordination and reaction speed.
Better mood.
Through the production and exchange of dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, endorphins, adrenaline, etc. in the brain and in the body, the organism is rewarded with a feeling of well-being during and after exercise.
Stress management.
When your brain releases chemicals, your body “receives” stimuli to relieve pain, reduce stress and inflammation, body aches, insomnia, fatigue and anxiety. In addition, thanks to better mental resistance, athletes can better manage stressful situations. Sport is a way to release “bad stress” and balance the body for the mental and physical challenges ahead.
Improved health.
Sport strengthens the functions of the cardiovascular system, the respiratory tract and the nervous system. Sport is a key factor in “refining” your metabolism. All of this should lead to better overall health.
Energy load.
In many medical and sports articles, it is said that an effect called “runner’s high” is reached after a few minutes of sport and that it is due to the chemicals produced “to manage” the effort. This “energy load” includes chemicals for load resistance, endurance, pain relief, etc. The end result is a feeling of “power up” (as long as the workout is not continued until fatigue wears you down). In many articles it is mentioned that even 20 minutes of activity can already help you to “get” a high energy charge.
Reduction of depression and anxiety.
Do you know the principle of the snowball effect? When rolling down a mountain, a snowball keeps growing as it descends. Sports have the same effect.
