Fitness
Trainers weigh in on mini workout snacks.
If you cant go extra hard and devote a full hour to the gym, then why bother?
Every minute and every mile matters and there are tremendous benefits to adding incremental movement to your day.
That said, only doing five minutes of exercise a day likely isnt enough in the long term.
Heres what trainers have to say.
The Benefits Of 5-Minute Workouts
If you only have five minutes to exercise, go for it.
Any movement, for any period of time, is great.
Also, true fitness has multiple components, includingheart-strengthening cardio, muscle-buildingresistance training, and flexibility.
And five-minute windows allow you to add more of these components to your life, she says.
For example, five minutes ofstretchingeach day and five minutes ofbodyweight resistance trainingabsolutely do add up.
Is 5 Minutes Of Exercise A Day Enough?
Ultimately, though, 10 to 30 minutes of exercise most days is best.
Burpees, in particular, are a greatfull-body workout, she says.
To focus on strength, try sets of squats, lunges, tricep dips, push-ups, or planks.
Planks are great because they work the total body every muscle is being used, Berger says.
You dont need any equipment.
You could also tack them onto longer workouts.
For instance, if you are a runner, use those five minutes for resistance training, Shulman says.
Raise that heart rate!
And there you have it.
Studies referenced:
Bhammar, DM.
(2012).Effects of fractionized and continuous exercise on 24-h ambulatory blood pressure.
Med Sci Sports Exerc.
(2022).Increased Physical Activity Among US Adults.
(2019).An Overview of Current Physical Activity Recommendations in Primary Care.
Korean J Fam Med.
