Forget HIIT - this easier alternative can help you live longer and healthier with just 10 minutes a day

While we might have spent the last 10 years battling our way through HIIT workouts with the promise of better fitness, the exercise world has turned on these intense training sessions in favour of something more chilled.

Moderate intensity exercise is the new golden child. In these sessions, you go for longer but much slower. A swimming workout, bike ride, or slow and steady run all count, as do some home Pilates workouts and even some types of yoga.

Walking is the main sport linked to moderate intensity exercise. It's easier to get into and stay in this zone by putting one foot in front of the other. Recently, researchers from the University of Leicester found that adding a short walk to your daily routine could add extra years to your life.

The study looked at over 40,000 women with an average age of 61 and found that going for a 10-minute walk alongside other regular daily activities can have a "meaningful benefit to life expectancy", adding one year to life. The more you do, the more years you see. The important part? It must be a brisk walk, i.e. moderate intensity exercise.

In NHS exercise guidelines, moderate intensity exercise for 150 minutes is the minimum level we all need to meet to reap the benefits of movement for our health. So what's it all about? We speak to a personal trainer to find out.

What is moderate intensity exercise?

Moderate intensity exercise, which is also known as 'zone 2 cardio', is generally exercise that sits within 50 to 70% of your maximum heart rate, says Alina Cox, the lead personal trainer specialising in women's fitness at Club Q Health. "It's where your breathing speeds up enough that singing would be difficult, but holding a conversation is still possible," she explains. "It's also normal to start sweating lightly after about 10 minutes of this kind of activity."

You can measure your exercise intensity in two ways: either by feeling (can you sing?) or numerically, which is more accurate.

To work it out numerically, you need your maximum heart rate - 220 minus your age. "So, if you're 40 years old, your maximum heart rate would be 180 beats per minute," says Cox.

"From there, you calculate 50 to 60% of that value. This means that, as a 40-year-old, you would be doing moderate-intensity activity when your heart rate is between 90 and 108 beats per minute," she says.

You can track your heart rate using the monitor on a treadmill, for example, or one of the best fitness trackers, which takes a constant reading throughout the day.

Examples of moderate intensity exercise

• Brisk walking
• Mowing the lawn
• Slow running
• Dancing
• Leisurely cycling
• Swimming
• Hiking
• Doubles tennis
• Rollerblading
• Elliptical trainer
• Slow rowing
• Stair walking

Benefits of moderate intensity exercise

1. Improves heart health

One of the many benefits of walking is how it positively affects our heart, and that goes for walking at a moderate intensity, as well as power walking.

The healthier the heart, the lower the risk of serious cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and so on, which helps us live longer and healthier.

A study published in the BMJ even found the exact speed at which you should walk to reap the benefits, says Cox. "Walking faster than three miles an hour was found to lower the risk of heart rhythm abnormalities by up to 43% more than slow walkers," she says.

2. Helps avoid burnout

A study by the American Psychological Association found that almost half of adults report using exercise to help lower cortisol levels and deal with stress.

While running and yoga typically top the list of go-to activities, other evidence suggests moderate intensity exercise (like going for an early morning walk) can be "especially effective for long-term stress management", says Cox.

This is likely because it doesn't raise our stress levels enough to produce mental fatigue or stress, she says.

3. Boosts brain health

Moderate intensity exercise isn't just for the body. The mind benefits too. "One advantage that stands out to me is that it improves cognitive function and mental health," says Cox.

"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," she says, pointing to a study in the Frontiers of Physiology Journal.

You're also a lot less likely to be tired after a leisurely cycling workout than after a high-intensity run, meaning you can concentrate for longer. For those who enjoy morning exercise, moderate intensity is the way forward.

4. Helps you live longer

As the study shows, brisk walking and other moderate intensity exercise can help lower your biological age and add years to your life.

They are some of the best exercises for longevity, thanks to the effect on the heart, respiratory system, metabolism, muscles, and brain.

5. Can help with weight loss

As moderate intensity exercise is less tiring than higher-intensity workouts, like running or fast cycling, you can do it more often. If you want to lose weight, this is ideal as you'll burn more calories over time, helping you get into a calorie deficit.

But by combining it with strength training, you can see even more benefit. "This cardio increases your overall daily calorie burn more than resistance training, which helps to get into a calorie deficit. However, it's important to weight train during weight loss to preserve muscle mass."

How much moderate intensity exercise should I do?

The NHS recommends 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise every week, done over four or five days a week or every day. Not all at once. This could be walking 30 minutes a day for five days a week or doing a 20-minute Pilates workout every day.

Along with this, the health body suggests breaking up the day to "reduce time spent sitting or lying down", and if you're struggling to manage the 150 minutes, you can also get enough exercise by doing "a mix of moderate, vigorous and very vigorous intensity activity".

Do I need to do any other type of exercise?

It's clear that moderate intensity exercise has its perks, but it's not the be-all and end-all of a healthy exercise routine. The NHS exercise guidelines suggest including other types of workouts into your week to complement your zone 2 cardio. Namely, weight training.

This can be a moderate intensity exercise, especially if you're doing a kettlebell workout flow or CrossFit. However, it's traditionally more of a lower intensity exercise, ideal for building muscle and bone strength and boosting metabolism.

Including weights into your exercise routine can help boost your cardio fitness and vice versa, says Cox. "One of my clients had trouble with walking lunges - not because of leg strength, but because she’d get out of breath quickly. In the beginning, she could only manage 12 steps before needing to stop. After incorporating light jogging twice a week, her endurance gradually increased. Week by week, her breathing became more controlled, her recovery quicker, and now she completes 20 walking lunges (10 per leg) with a higher weight than before with no problem."

The guidelines also 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 faster cycling, running, skipping rope, or other racket sports like singles tennis or pickleball.