Study Links 560 to 610 Weekly Exercise Minutes With Lower Cardiovascular Risk

A study suggests 560 to 610 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity per week may cut cardiovascular risk by more than 30%, versus about 8% to 9% at 150 minutes.

Medicine

Details

A 2026 observational study examined how weekly moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness relate to cardiovascular disease. Researchers analyzed data from 17,088 adults with device-measured activity and estimated fitness, following their health for a median of about 7.8 years. The current public health benchmark of at least 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity per week was associated with a modest reduction in cardiovascular risk of roughly 8% to 9%. The study found that activity levels around 560 to 610 minutes per week were associated with a risk reduction of more than 30%, while roughly 340 to 370 minutes was associated with about a 20% reduction. People with lower fitness appeared to need somewhat more activity to reach comparable levels of protection than people with higher fitness. Examples of moderate-to-vigorous activity include brisk walking, running and cycling. The findings do not mean that every adult should suddenly exercise for 10 hours each week. The study was observational, so the associations cannot by themselves prove that a specific amount of exercise directly causes a particular reduction in risk. The researchers also noted that the existing 150-minute guideline still provides meaningful cardiovascular benefit and may serve as an important starting point. The higher activity range is better understood as a level associated with substantially greater protection in this study, rather than a universal prescription for everyone.

More videos

Up nextThe Chimpanzee That Prepared Rocks for a Future Outburst