A new meta-analysis in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise finds that lower doses of higher-intensity exercise leads to greater fitness.
The study, led by Niels Vollard of the University of Sterling in the U.K, looked into the relationship between fitness level and repetition. The meta-analysis examined the data from 34 studies on cyclists doing “supramaximal” sprints (giving all-out effort), and was measured by VO2 max (the amount of oxygen that your body can metabolize to fuel your muscles).
Researchers found that after two sprints, the fitness benefits start to drop off, with the improvement in VO2 max falling by 5 percent on average per additional sprint.
“For the first time, we have evidence to suggest an indicator of fitness levels is improved more by doing fewer repetitions of high-intensity exercise,” Vollard said in a statement.
More research will need to be done to figure out the minimum viable dose for fitness, he said, but this is welcome evidence that high-intensity, short-duration workouts really do work. In relation to this, its seems that you also only really need to exercise one day a week to stave off the Grim Reaper (sort of).
A new study in JAMA Internal Medicine tracked more than 63,000 adults — 55 percent female, average age of 58 — over nine years, and found that people who met the World Health Organization guideline of 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week in one or two sessions had a 30 percent reduced risk of mortality compared to people who didn’t work out.
“The present study suggests that less frequent bouts of activity, which might be more easily fit into a busy lifestyle, offer considerable health benefits, even in the obese and those with major risk factors,” wrote lead author Gary O’Donovan, of the University of Leicester, and his colleagues.
So if your getting a run in at least once or twice a week, you’re doing really well.