Most expert health organisations recommend that you strive to do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, along with two days of muscle strengthening, for your overall health. But a new study rethinks the amount of time you need to reap the health benefits of working out—smaller bursts of exercise may actually lower your cancer risk.
The study, which was published in JAMA Oncology, analysed data from 22,398 adults around the age of 62 who didn’t have a regular exercise routine. Those adults wore activity trackers on their wrists for seven days, and the researchers then compared that data with information over a period of several years of cancer-related diagnoses, hospitalisations, and deaths in the study participants.
The researchers discovered that participants who did daily vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA) for an average of 4.5 minutes a day had a 32% lower risk of developing certain types of cancer over the next six to seven years. The cancer types included kidney, bladder, stomach and lung cancers,
There was also a lowered risk for people who exercised even less. Those who worked out for 3.4 to 3.6 minutes a day had a cancer risk that dropped by 17% to 18%.
“VILPA may be a promising intervention for cancer prevention among individuals unable or unmotivated to exercise in leisure time,” the researchers concluded.
Professor Karen Canfell, Director of the Daffodil Centre, says regular physical activity is an important strategy for preventing cancer, through direct physical benefits and indirect benefits in helping to maintain a healthy weight.
“More than 1,800 cancer cases diagnosed in Australia this year are likely to be the direct result of physical inactivity, while many more will be indirectly related to physical inactivity because of its association with obesity, which is also a cancer risk factor,” said Professor Canfell.
“This new study shows that the more you move at a higher intensity as part of your daily living, the lower your risk of developing cancer, especially up to the 13 types associated with physical inactivity.”
But why might short bursts of workouts help lower your cancer risk? Here’s what experts have to say.
What is vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA)?
Vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (or VILPA) means getting “brief and sporadic” bursts of vigorous physical activity during daily living, the researchers explain in the study. Those are usually one- to two-minute bouts and can include things like very fast walking or stair climbing while you go about your day.
“VILPA is a bit like applying the principles of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) to your everyday life,” says lead study author Emmanuel Stamatakis, a professor at the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney.
Why can short bursts of exercise help lower your cancer risk?
This isn’t the first research to link VILPA with a lowered risk of cancer. A study of 25,241 people who didn’t exercise that was published last year in Nature Medicine found that people who did three bouts of VILPA a day that lasted for one to two minutes each had a 38% to 40% lowered risk of all-cause and cancer death risk, as well as a nearly 50% lowered risk of dying from heart disease.
The researchers in the latest study didn’t pursue why there’s a link between VILPA and a lower risk of cancer—they just found the association. But experts say there may be something to this.
“There may be some effect on metabolism and immune function that could be helpful at reducing cancer risk,” says neuro-oncologist Dr Santosh Kesari. This means short bursts of exercise could help jump-start your metabolism and lower the risk of becoming overweight or obese, both of which are risk factors for a slew of cancers. An improved immune function may also lower your risk of developing certain types of cancer, Dr Kesari says.
“Exercise may help with the immune system’s ability to fight and prevent cancer,” says medical oncologist Dr Wael Harb. “Our body is constantly making mutations in DNA and our immune system surveillance is able to detect these changes and eradicate those cells. By exercising, you may be able to tilt the balance in your favour.”
Ultimately, though, “further follow-up studies are still needed to determine exactly how exercise affects cancer risk,” Dr Kesari says.
What do these short bursts of exercise look like?
There’s a wide potential range with VILPA—the goal is really to get your heart rate up quickly. If you want to do it in a classic workout setting, strength and conditioning specialist Albert Matheny recommends trying the following:
- Sprints
- Speed bursts on a bike
- Fast rowing
- Medicine ball slams
- Burpees
But if you prefer to toss VILPA into your day in a less formal way, climbing stairs quickly, power walking, carrying heavy grocery bags, and running around with kids can qualify—as long as it gets your heart rate up, Matheny says. There is a caveat, though: your fitness level matters.
“A walk or brisk walk for someone at a low aerobic fitness level would need the vigorous threshold,” he says. “For someone at a moderate level or above, a brisk walk is not intense enough.” If you already have a good fitness level, he suggests opting for harder exercises like taking the stairs.
But Matheny recommends just doing what you can. “Something is always better than nothing,” he says. Dr Kesari agrees. “Just a short amount of exercise could be helpful,” he says. “Taking a few minutes to exercise could lead to significant health benefits.”
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