Research
Mixed
The health benefits of non-occupational physical activity follow a non-linear dose-response curve, where the greatest risk reduction occurs between 0 and 8.75 mMET-hours/week, with diminishing returns above 17.5 mMET-hours/week.
You get the most 'bang for your buck' by moving from a sedentary lifestyle to a moderately active one (150 mins/week). Doing more than double that amount (300 mins/week) offers smaller additional health benefits, so prioritize consistency over intensity if you are busy.
StrongQualifiesHIGH confidence
Differences in risk were greater between 0 and 8.75 marginal metabolic equivalent of task- hours per week (mMET- hours/week) ... with smaller marginal differences in risk above this level to 17.5 mMET- hours/week, beyond which additional differences were small and uncertain.
Why this rating
Based on the same large-scale meta-analysis with robust modeling of non-linearity.
Source
Non-occupational physical activity and risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and mortality outcomes: a dose–response meta-analysis of large prospective studies
Leandro García et al. · British Journal of Sports Medicine · 2023
Meta-analysis · 196 studiesCited 246×
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