The benefits of walking are well documented, from improved mood to better heart health, weight control, stronger muscles… Walking is an effective way to get moving, to the point where it can even reduce the risk of disease and prolong life.
But if you're someone who doesn't enjoy exercise and has trouble finding motivation, you may be wondering how much walking you need to do to protect your long-term health.
Many studies have looked at the effects of walking for different lengths and durations on disease and longevity. And in general, it seems that the more you walk, the more health benefits you reap, especially if you lead a sedentary lifestyle.
Walking for just 11 minutes a day can have many benefits for your body (Photo: Adobe Stock).
Longevity Tip: Walk 11 Minutes a Day to Prevent Disease and Early Death
A 2023 review of 196 studies involving about 30 million participants found that walking for 11 minutes a day (with the goal of getting your heart pumping) could prevent 1 in 10 premature deaths.
The review found that walking 11 minutes a day also reduced the risk of heart disease by 17%, cancer by 7% and reduced the risk of premature death by 23%.
“Our results are very encouraging for people who are currently very inactive. It really will make a big difference to your health if you try to do even a little bit.
So we hope that will motivate more people to be more active,” Dr. Søren Brage, co-author of the paper and head of the Physical Activity Epidemiology Group at the University of Cambridge (UK), told TODAY.com .
Why is walking 11 minutes a day important?
According to Dr. Brage, physical activity is not just about sweating it out in the gym. It’s much broader than that, including walking or cycling to work… You just get up and use the big muscles in your legs, move them to stimulate your metabolism. That’s how humans are designed, and if we don’t use our muscles, they atrophy.
Other benefits of regular physical activity include reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression, prevention of weight gain and chronic disease, more energy, and better sleep.
How to get started
Aim to walk 11 minutes a day for a few weeks and see how you feel. Once you feel comfortable walking 77 minutes a week, you can try increasing your activity to 150 minutes a week, the amount recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Is it ever too late to reap the benefits of walking?
There is no specific age at which walking benefits occur. Even people who start walking later in life can see meaningful improvements in health and longevity, although the extent of the benefits may depend on existing health conditions. However, people who were previously inactive tend to gain the greatest relative benefits.
As we age, our body’s “reserves” tend to decrease, as does the maximum level of fitness that can be achieved. If we exercise, we can put ourselves in a much better state of health, providing better protection against some of the changing dangers that inevitably come with age.
According to Medical News Today , regular exercise is clearly beneficial to our bodies compared to a mostly sedentary lifestyle. And walking is accessible to almost everyone, making it a simple and powerful tool for a healthy life.
Participating in physical activity can help improve bone density, increase strength, reduce body fat, and improve cardiovascular health. It can also help improve mood and cognitive function.
Improving factors such as heart rate, blood pressure or body fat can all help reduce the amount of work the heart has to do to pump blood around the body, which in turn has a protective effect.
Since cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in older adults, it is not surprising that reducing these risk factors could subsequently lead to reduced cardiovascular mortality and thus all-cause mortality.
Walking differs from jogging or weight training in its lower intensity and accessibility, making it especially effective for sedentary people.
Running and weight training target different physiological systems, such as cardiovascular or musculoskeletal health. Walking, on the other hand, is easier to maintain and offers significant longevity benefits without the barriers often associated with higher-intensity exercise.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/ban-can-di-bo-bao-nhieu-phut-moi-ngay-de-keo-dai-tuoi-tho-20250704090802742.htm
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