Once or twice a week: the exercise that can cut heart risk

Exercising just once or twice a week can reduce the risk of heart disease or stroke, the NHS says, although its guidance asks adults for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week.

Moderate activity raises your heart rate and makes you breathe faster and feel warmer. One way to tell you are working at that level, the guidance says, is that you can still talk, but not sing.

Vigorous activity leaves you breathing hard and fast, unable to say more than a few words without pausing for breath.

The advice, written for adults aged 19 to 64, goes beyond the weekly minutes. It says they should also:

• spread their exercise evenly over four to five days a week, or every day
• do strengthening activities that work all the major muscle groups – legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms – on at least two days a week
• spend less time sitting or lying down, and break up long periods of not moving with some activity

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) gives adults the same weekly minutes and the same minimum of two days of muscle-strengthening activity. The CDC adds that an equivalent mix of moderate and vigorous activity also counts.

The NHS says exercise can reduce the risk of major illnesses such as coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer, and lower the risk of early death by up to 30%.

Its advice also links regular activity to a lower risk of depression and dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Physical activity can boost self-esteem, mood, sleep quality and energy, too.

Nearly a third of the world’s adults, 1.8 billion people, are physically inactive, according to a World Health Organization fact sheet. Those who are not active enough have a 20% to 30% higher risk of death than people who are.

The same fact sheet says regular physical activity is “associated with” lower risks of death and disease. That describes a link, not a guarantee for any one person.

People aged 65 and over have separate NHS guidelines with the same weekly minutes. They add exercises to improve strength, balance and flexibility, which the guidelines say “will help make you stronger and feel more confident on your feet”.

Anyone who has not exercised for some time, or who has medical conditions or concerns, should speak to a GP first, the NHS says.