Leaving physical exercise for the weekend can be as healthy as spreading it over several sessions throughout the week. According to a study in the scientific journal circulation, Cited by El País, concentrating sports activity in one or two days can reduce the risk of developing more than 200 diseases, compared to inactive people.
The study followed more than 90,000 people, some of whom were members of health associations. weekend warriors [guerreiros de fim de semana] —who practice intense physical activity between Saturday and Sunday—, comparing the results obtained with people who distribute physical exercise more regularly and others considered inactive. And he concluded that the “weekend warriors” are more successful in preventing diseases than the inactive population and it was also found that “the results are similar to those obtained by those who share more activity during the week,” according to one of the authors of study Shaan Khurshid, from Massachusetts General Hospital.
The World Health Organization recommends a minimum of 150 minutes (two and a half hours) of moderate physical exercise, or 75 (one hour and a quarter) of intense exercise, per week. People who do not achieve these goals are considered inactive. Until now, medical directives advised distributing sports activities into several sessions throughout the week. This study may help reverse this trend.
The fact that the average age of the research participants is 62 years old gives strength to the results of the study, because “it is the age at which the aforementioned diseases occur most and at which physical exercise has the greatest effect.” “, according to Almudena Beltrán, a specialist in internal medicine, cited by El País, from the doctors’ point of view, these results are “a very good tool to be able to individualize and adapt to the patient,” he stated.
“It would be necessary to see if the results are replicated in other studies, but in my opinion they are consistent data,” said Rodríguez Padial, president of the Spanish Society of Cardiology, also quoted by the Spanish newspaper. “150 minutes is the minimum. The more, the better. However, the most important thing, as the study shows, is to escape from a sedentary lifestyle,” he concludes.
Source: Observadora
