A little bit goes a long way
This is, by far, the best news I've heard in MONTHS… According to a brand-new study, it only takes 7 minutes of exercise PER WEEK to dramatically improve your health. Researchers from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, England investigated the effects of short spurts of exercise on the blood sugar levels of 16 "relatively out-of-shape" volunteers (i.e. normal people). The participants rode an exercise bike for 30 seconds, between four and six times a day, three days per week -- for a grand total of 7 minutes -- or less! After just two weeks, the researchers found that the subjects had a 23 percent improvement in their bodies' ability to use insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. And these effects appeared to last for up to 10 days after the subjects had exercised. This discovery definitely borders on "too good to be true." And there are a couple of things to bear in mind… First, the volunteers in this study were all in their 20s, so we don't know for sure how the results will translate to those of us who are well past that. Also, the 30-second spurts of exercise on the bike weren't at a leisurely pace: The subjects were instructed to sprint. Of course, that term is a bit hard to define, since different people have different ability levels. Basically, you should be putting forth your maximum amount of effort for 30 full seconds. And, finally, the results of this study don't necessarily mean that you shouldn't aim for more than 7 minutes of exercise per week. But they do prove, once again, that even a little bit can go a long way. Source:
"Want to get healthy? Exercise 7 minutes a week," Reuters Health news (www.reutershealth.com), 1/28/09 | 
