New study reveals 'bare minimum' exercise for longer life

Woman gardening, which counts as one exercise type that can improve longevity — (Image credit: Getty Images)

We’re busy people in 2026, so if there’s a shortcut to help live healthily for longer, a lot of us will probably take it. It's why numerous studies have looked at how even small changes to our physical activity and daily routine can improve our longevity.

Researchers from the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences looked at how small increases in activity can lower your mortality risk. They analysed movement data from more than 135,000 older people who wore activity trackers: 40,000 from Norway, Sweden and the US who wore the device on their hip and nearly 95,000 UK Biobank participants who wore a fitness tracker on their wrist.

The results, published in The Lancet, showed that 10% of deaths could be avoided if the general population (the most active aside) added just five minutes of moderate-intensity exercise to their day. This is an exercise that increases your heart rate, but you should still be able to talk while doing it. It could include brisk walking, cycling, swimming, dancing or gardening. The results showed that 6% of deaths could be prevented among the least active group, who averaged two minutes of physical activity per day. In addition, up to 15% of deaths could be prevented in the general population if 10 minutes of physical activity were added to their day.

“Considering that it is unlikely for all individuals to achieve the WHO (World Health Organisation) physical activity recommendations of 150 min of moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity weekly, our data underscore the large impact of realistic and achievable behaviour goals on population health,” the authors write.

The team also looked at what happens when we reduce the time we spend sitting down. They found that cutting sedentary time by 30 minutes a day could prevent 3% of deaths in the high-risk group and 7.3% in the general population cohort. The results from the UK Biobank “were of a smaller magnitude but still substantial - eg, reducing sedentary time by 30 min/day in all except the most active participants was associated with preventing 4.5% of total deaths,” the study says.

This was an observational study, meaning a direct link between exercise and death prevention can’t be proved, and we don’t know how long to make these lifestyle changes for to see results. However, it does show the importance of moving our bodies daily for our overall health.

Why is moderate exercise so good?

Improves our heart health: Exercise, such as power walking or walking at a brisk pace, is great for your cardiovascular health, lowering your risk of heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure.
Reduces stress: We know that moving our bodies and getting out in the fresh air can do wonders for high cortisol levels, leaving us feeling more relaxed. Stress is associated with weight gain, poor sleep, depression and some more serious illnesses such as dementia, which is why walking, yoga and other types of exercise are great for long-term stress management.
Boosts our brain health: "Compared to both low and very high-intensity workouts, moderate-intensity exercise leads to the greatest improvements in working memory, hand-eye coordination, and reaction time, particularly in older adults," personal trainer Alina Cox previously told woman&home, pointing to a study in the Frontiers of Physiology Journal.
Helps with weight management: Moderate exercise is obviously easier than vigorous exercise, meaning you can do it more often. This means you’ll burn more calories, helping you lose weight if that’s your goal. Strength training is also important for weight management, especially for women, to increase muscle mass and prevent bone density loss during and after menopause.

NHS guidelines suggest you can do vigorous-intensity exercise for 75 minutes instead of moderate-intensity exercise for 150 minutes a week, should you prefer. This higher intensity exercise includes activities, like cycling workouts, running, skipping rope, or other racket sports like singles tennis or pickleball.

Kat Storr has been a digital journalist for over 15 years after starting her career at Sky News, where she covered everything from world events to royal babies and celebrity deaths. After going freelance eight years ago, she now focuses on women's health and fitness content, writing across a range of UK publications.

From perimenopause to the latest fitness trends, Kat loves researching and writing about it all. She's happy to give any fitness challenge a go and speaks to experts about wellbeing issues affecting people every day.

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