An international study led by researchers from the University of Sydney and the Universidad Europea in Spain has found that longer, continuous walks provide greater cardiovascular benefits than taking the same number of steps in short, sporadic bouts.
The study
Published in the Annals of International Medicine, the study evaluated data from 33,560 adults aged 40–79 years who walked less than 8000 steps a day and had no cardiovascular disease or cancer at baseline.
Participants wore wristbands to monitor both step count and walking patterns, with health outcomes tracked over an average of 8 years.
The results reveal that those who accumulated most of their steps through 1 or 2 longer walks lasting at least 10–15 minutes had a significantly lower risk of mortality and cardiovascular events (e.g., heart attack or stroke) compared with those whose walking was broken into shorter bouts of less than 5 minutes.
The researchers found:
- People who walked continuously for 10-15 minutes per day had a 4% risk of cardiovascular events. Those who walked continuously for only 5 minutes a day had a 13% risk of having a cardiovascular incident.
- The health benefits of continuous bouts of walking were most pronounced among the least active, for example, those who walked 5000 steps a day or less. Among this group, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease halved from 15% for those who walked up to 5 minutes a day to 7% for those who walked up to 15 minutes a day.
- Among the most sedentary group (5000 steps a day or less), the risk of death dropped from 5% for those who walked in 5-minute stretches during the day, to less than 1% for those who walked up to 15 minutes a day.
Switch from short bouts to longer continuous walks
“For the most inactive people, switching from brief walks here and there to longer continuous walks may come with some health benefits,” says co-lead author Dr Matthew Ahmadi, Deputy Director of the Mackenzie Wearables Research Hub and member of the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney.
“There is a perception that health professionals have recommended walking 10,000 steps a day as the goal, but this isn’t necessary.
“Simply adding one or two longer walks per day, each lasting at least 10-15 minutes at a comfortable but steady pace, may have significant benefits – especially for people who don’t walk much.”
Senior author Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, Director of the Mackenzie Wearables Research Hub and physical activity theme leader at the Charles Perkins Centre, says that considering walking patterns is important for understanding the health benefits of exercise.
“We tend to place all the emphasis on the number of steps or the total amount of walking, but neglect the crucial role of patterns, for example, how walking is done,” he says.
“This study shows that even people who are very physically inactive can maximise their heart health benefit by tweaking their walking patterns to walk for longer at a time, ideally for at least 10-15 minutes, when possible.”
Small changes = big impact
“Our research shows that simple changes can make all the difference to your health. If you walk a little, set aside some time to walk more often and in longer sessions. Such small changes can have a big impact,” says co-lead author Dr Borja del Pozo from the Universidad Europea.
