A new study has found that those who live sedentary lifestyles can do just 22 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day to help reduce their risk of dying prematurely.
The study was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine and found that the magic number for those wanting to add exercise to their lifestyles is just 22 minutes.
The study examined 11,989 people who participated in several fitness-tracker-based studies. Those who participated in the studies were at least 50 years old and tracked their weight, height, sex, educational level, alcohol use, smoking, and prior diseases like cancer or diabetes.
Researchers found that 5,943 of the participants reported that they sat for less than 10.5 hours, while the remaining 6,042 sat for 10.5 or more hours per day.
Using death registries, the study then examined the connection between sedentary time and physical activity on mortality risk.
Overall, the study found that those who exercised for less than 22 minutes a day and sat for more than 12 hours had a 38% higher risk of death compared to those who sat for only eight hours.
The results shine a light on sedentary lifestyles and the importance that physical activity can have on a person’s overall health.
Dr. Edvard Sagelv, an author of the study from The Arctic University of Norway in Tromso, shared in a statement the dangers of being sedentary.
“The research field is a little bit divided on how sedentary time is dangerous. I would say, compared with not doing physical activity, sedentary time is not that dangerous,” he said. “However, previous research indicates that excess sedentary time is increasing the risks of disease and premature death.”
The study narrowed in on 22 minutes of physical activity a day, which adds up to 150 minutes a week, the recommended number by the World Health Organization.
Sagelv said the benefits for those doing more than 22 minutes only increase as their active time does.
“That is a beautiful part. There appears to be no upper limit at which it does not provide any health benefits. However, at the higher ends, about 60-120 min per day, the risk reduction appears to level off a bit, especially for those being highly sedentary,” he said.