Mini Workouts: How Short Bursts of Exercise Can Improve Your Health

The benefits of consistent exercise are vast—from boosting mood and increasing energy to protecting against disease. Exercise is considered a major factor in preventing and managing chronic illness. Regular exercise has incredible effects on both mental and physical health. But even with its awesome pros, 1/3 of adults and 4/5 of adolescents don't exercise as much as they should.

The typical recommendation for exercise, coming from the CDC, is a minimum of 30 minutes a day for at least 5 days a week, or 150 minutes of physical activity each week.

A common reason many people don't reach this standard is a lack of time or motivation. Working out is also a habit that must be formed and practiced consistently, and this can be overwhelming for many.

The good news?

You don't need to be in the gym for hours to reap some of the amazing benefits of exercise. The latest studies show that even short bursts of physical activity—as little as one minute each— can produce some of the healing effects we all want. Let's see how working out in short bursts can enhance your health.

Cancer Risk

A recent study published in JAMA Oncology shows that even just four and a half minutes of intense physical activity per day, done in one-minute bursts, could reduce your risk of developing certain cancers by 32 percent.

Using data from the UK Biobank, the study looked at health records of 22,000 participants, those who didn't exercise regularly, over the course of seven years to look out for cancer development.

The results?

They found that those who engaged in short bursts of intense exercise daily, or "vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity", like running up the stairs or carrying heavy groceries, were much less likely to develop certain cancers including lung and breast cancer.

So according to the research, even if you don't intentionally exercise regularly, if you do small bouts of exercise throughout the day, enough to get your heart rate going, you'll still gain some of the disease-preventing benefits of consistent exercise.

Heart Disease

It's not just cancer. Another study looked at how short bursts of exercise impact risk of heart disease and overall mortality. This study looked at data tracking the physical activity and health records of participants over 7-9 years. They found that those who exercised in short bursts of over one minute a day had lower mortality rates and fewer heart-related incidents.

Both of these studies looked at adults who do not normally exercise. The short bursts of activity they performed were actually not intentional periods of exercise, but activities that are a part of daily life that can get your heart rate up, like sprinting to catch the last train or playing a high-energy game or sport.

Short Bursts of Exercise You Can Try

If you don't typically exercise, here are some simple activities you can try to incorporate throughout your day to help prevent diseases like cancer and heart disease:

• Take the stairs whenever you can
• Take a break from work by doing jumping jacks or burpees
• Sprint or power walk to get to wherever you're going

HIIT

These short bursts of physical activity that are beneficial for our health are basically a less intense form of HIIT. HIIT refers to a type of training where you exercise in short bursts using the majority of your energy, coupled with rest or low-intensity periods. This type of training does great things for the body including improving aerobic endurance and metabolic health.

So if you're performing some short bursts of activity throughout the day, you're already off to a decent start. If you want to amplify those health benefits, HIIT is a great form of training to try.

But if you don't have time in your day, or find it too overwhelming to devote the recommended 30 minutes to exercise, you can use the same concept as the "vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity" and do mini-workouts.

You can split up your 30 minutes into shorter intervals throughout the day and still reap awesome benefits. And according to the research, you'll benefit from even just four and a half minutes per day.

Splitting up your exercise into shorter bursts can make working out less daunting and more fun, and will make it easier to form the habit of daily exercise.

Take Home Message

Don't underestimate the positive impact of exercise. Even in tiny bursts of just one minute, it's a superpower that can help you prevent disease and feel your best. You got this.