5x30 formula: how often do you have to get up and how much to walk if you spend a lot of time sitting down, according to a study

Overweight, obesity and diabetes, among other non-communicable diseases, are on a worrying rise.

Poor diet is one of the factors driving this progress, but it is not the only one: physical inactivity also plays a central role.

The causes of the problem are clear: the world population

.

On that last point, there is growing evidence to suggest that prolonged sitting, a staple of modern life, is dangerous to your health, even if you exercise regularly.

As a result, health professionals advise people of all ages to spend

and to add minutes moving.

The slogan can be difficult to comply with, especially for those who, due to work or other reasons, must spend many hours on a chair.

For this reason, more and more scientific studies

linked to an unhealthy lifestyle.

A sedentary lifestyle increases the risk of developing diseases.

Photo Shutterstock.

In this context, a new work carried out by exercise physiologists from Columbia University (United States) entitled

is included .

How often do we have to get up from our chairs?

These were the central questions that the researchers tried to answer and thus they arrived at a formula that was associated with benefits.

The study, led by Keith Diaz, a professor of behavioral medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, was published in

, the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.

Unlike other studies that test one or two activity options, this paper  tested five

: one minute of walking after every 30 minutes of sitting, one minute after one hour, five minutes every half hour, and five minutes of movement. after spending 60 seated.

The alternative of not walking was also tested.

"If we hadn't compared multiple options and

, we would have only been able to provide people with our best guesses about the optimal routine," Diaz said.

The study included 11 adults who attended the laboratory of the team led by Diaz.

All were asked to spend eight hours sitting in an ergonomic chair, getting up only to complete different walks on a treadmill or to go to the bathroom.

The researchers

to ensure that the participants did not over or under exercise and regularly measured their blood pressure and blood sugar, two key indicators of cardiovascular health.

Participants were allowed to work on a computer, read, and use their phones during the sessions and were given standardized meals.

5x30, the formula for success?

The optimal amount of movement, the researchers found, was to walk five minutes every half hour.

This was the frequency and amount that significantly lowered both

.

Additionally, this walking regimen had a marked effect on how participants responded to large meals, reducing blood sugar spikes by

compared to sitting all day.

walk break every half hour

also provided modest benefits for blood sugar levels throughout the day, while walking every 60 minutes (whether for one minute or five minutes) did not show any benefits.

All amounts of walking significantly lowered blood pressure compared to sitting all day.

In addition, all the "recesses" (except walking for a minute every hour), led to significant reductions in fatigue and marked improvements in mood.

"The

and fatigue are important," said the study's author.

"People tend to repeat behaviors that make them feel good and that they enjoy."

Columbia researchers are currently testing 25 different doses of walking on health outcomes in a larger and more diverse sample of people: Participants in the current study were in their 40s, 50s, and 60s, and most

.

"What we know now is that for optimal health, you need regular movement at work, in addition to a daily exercise routine," Diaz said.

They advise getting up and walking around at least once every half hour.

Photo Shutterstock.

"While that may seem impractical, our findings show that even

during the workday can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and other chronic conditions," he concluded.

other formulas

The formula the Columbia University researchers arrived at is close to those arrived at in previous work and to those arrived at by colleagues who led similar studies.

Using data from six studies that included more than 130,000 adults in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Sweden, Diaz and his team applied a technique called composition analysis to determine how different combinations of activities, including

(such as walking, , running, or other activities that increase the heart rate)

(such as housework or occasional walking), and

affect mortality.

The ideal combination to live longer and better, as they found in the review, is a

.

That is, get three minutes of moderate to vigorous activity or 12 minutes of light activity per hour of sitting.

"While there will always be sitting in our lives, as with most things in life, it's about sitting in moderation. The key is finding the right balance between sedentary time and physical activity," Diaz said while presenting those results.

While other work carried out by scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, showed that 

can reduce the health consequences of spending a lot of time sitting.

The research, involving 16 middle-aged men and women from Stockholm with sedentary office jobs and a history of obesity, showed that walking up several flights of stairs, doing some jumping jacks or squats, or even taking a few steps during these mini-breaks improves aspects of blood glucose control, without significantly interrupting the workday.

***

Do you want to read more about exercise and physical activity?

These notes may interest you:

➪Express training: can you work the whole body in just 20 minutes?

➪How to enhance the use of the treadmill in the gym to burn more fat

➪Food, physical activity, sleep and sexuality after 60: the advice of a self-care manual

➪Three strength exercises for people over 50

➪Six tips to start running at 60

***

➪ Do you have any questions about health and well-being that you would like us to address in section notes?

Enter the Clarín Help Center by clicking here, enter

and then

.

Write us your query and send.

Ready!

look also

Starting to exercise when you are older and after a sedentary life: 5 tips to get you started

Diabetes: a questionnaire to calculate if you are at risk of developing it and 5 tips to avoid it