Why all of us should do this exercise. How much walking do you need to do to help ward off your risk of early death? Getting enough physical activity is central to staying healthy, especially as we age. As an oncologist, I often encourage my patients to get physical activity. You may be surprised to hear me offer that walking is a remarkably effective (and efficient) way to exercise.
A new study shows us that walking for a certain amount of time weekly adds years to our lives by reducing numerous health risks. Let’s look at how long you and I should be strolling to reap the benefits. We get new insights from a study recently published in the American Heart Association Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle & Cardiometabolic Health Conference.
Researchers equipped nearly 17,000 women over the age of 60 with waist step counters to measure walking patterns over four to seven days. They divided the number of steps taken by participants into two groups: 1) bouts of ten minutes or longer with few interruptions; and 2) short bursts of steps (for example, housework or walking out to a car). With a median of 5.2 years of follow-up, here are the study findings:
Women who took a minimum of 2,000 steps daily cut their risk of death by about one-third. The women who walked at least 4,500 steps had an even more significant drop in death.
Getting a bit more granular, those who took more steps in short bursts lived longer, regardless of how many steps they had in more extended, uninterrupted periods. Each initial increase of 1,000 steps daily appeared associated with a just over one-quarter (28 percent) drop in death during the follow-up period. The benefits leveled off at approximately 4,500 steps daily in short bursts.
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