Weekend workouts are enough to ‘slash your risk of an early death by 33%'

Scottish Sun

6 days ago

How many minutes you'll have to squeeze into a weekend revealed
BEAT IT Weekend workouts are enough to 'slash your risk of an early death by 33%'
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EXERCISING only at the weekend can be enough to slash your risk of dying young, a study found.
Researchers at Harvard University, USA, said 'weekend warriors' with diabetes get just as much benefit as people who work out every day.
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Doing exercise solely at the weekend is enough to reap the benefits
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Cramming physical activity into Saturday and Sunday is common as many of us struggle to make time in our daily lives.
It might seem like less exercise but a study showed the heart benefits can be just as great.
Data from nearly 52,000 Americans with diabetes showed that weekend warriors had a 21 per cent lower risk of dying young of any cause, compared to people who did not regularly exercise.
Their risk of dying from heart disease was 33 per cent lower, study authors wrote in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
The risk reduction was slightly greater even than people who exercised multiple days per week.
The key was simply to hit the NHS target of at least 2.5 hours of moderate activity over the two days.
Commenting on the study, Professor Ronald Sigal of the University of Calgary, said: 'Regular physical activity is recommended for most people with or without diabetes.
'On the whole, these findings are encouraging.
'They provide evidence that protective effects of physical activity against cardiovascular and overall mortality could be achieved through one or two weekly physical activity sessions."
Sport England figures show the number of adults trying to get fit is on the rise, with 30million people – 64 per cent of adults – hitting the NHS exercise target last year.
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Regular activity is proven to be great for your health and reduces the risk of cancer, heart disease, dementia, stroke and mental health conditions.
It's not the first time weekend exercise has been shown to be beneficial.
A 2024 study published in the journal Circulation, led by Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, looked at data from 89,573 people from the UK Biobank, a database which holds medical and lifestyle records of more than half a million Britons.
The team said that compared to no exercise, cramming workouts in one to two days or being active throughout the week were both associated with "substantially lower risks of over 200 diseases", from heart disease to mood disorders.