"Walked 10,000 Steps a Day? This Is How to Walk to Dramatically Lower Death Risk"

Australian and Spanish Researchers: "Walking for Over 10 Minutes at a Time"
"More Effective for Health Than Taking Frequent Short Walks"

A study has found that even if the total number of steps taken in a day is the same, walking continuously for more than 10 to 15 minutes at a time reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death more significantly than walking in short multiple sessions. This analysis suggests that 'how you walk' is a more important factor for health than simply 'how much you walk.'

A study has found that even if the number of steps taken in a day is the same, walking continuously for more than 10 to 15 minutes at a time reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death more significantly than walking in short multiple sessions. Photo by Clipart Korea

On October 28, a joint research team from the University of Sydney in Australia and the European University in Spain published the results of a 9.5-year follow-up study in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the journal of the American College of Physicians, tracking the relationship between walking patterns and the risk of cardiovascular disease and death among more than 33,000 participants in the UK Biobank.

The study subjects were adults aged 40 to 79 with no history of cardiovascular disease or cancer at the start of the study. All participants wore wrist-worn activity trackers to record their daily step count and walking duration. The researchers divided them into four groups based on the duration of each walking session: less than 5 minutes (42.9%), 5 to less than 10 minutes (33.5%), 10 to less than 15 minutes (15.5%), and 15 minutes or more (8.0%). They then compared the incidence of cardiovascular disease and mortality rates among these groups.

Group Walking Continuously for More Than 10 Minutes, Up to 80% Lower Risk of Death

The analysis showed that people who walked continuously for 10 to 15 minutes or longer for most of their daily steps had lower overall mortality and risk of cardiovascular disease compared to those who frequently walked in sessions of less than 5 minutes. During the follow-up period, the all-cause mortality risk was 4.6% in the group walking less than 5 minutes at a time, which was much higher than the 1.83% in the 5 to less than 10 minutes group, 0.84% in the 10 to less than 15 minutes group, and 0.8% in the 15 minutes or more group.

A study has found that even if the total number of steps taken in a day is the same, walking continuously for more than 10 to 15 minutes at a time reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death more significantly than walking in short multiple sessions. Photo by Getty Images Bank

The cumulative 9.5-year risk of cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and stroke was also highest in the less than 5 minutes group at 13.03%, followed by 11.09% in the 5 to less than 10 minutes group, 7.71% in the 10 to less than 15 minutes group, and 4.39% in the 15 minutes or more group. In other words, the shorter the duration of each walking session, the higher the overall risk of death and cardiovascular disease, whereas those who walked continuously for 15 minutes or more at a time had a noticeably lower risk.

"Walking Pattern Is More Important Than Total Amount"

Emmanuel Stamatakis, the lead researcher and professor at the University of Sydney, stated, "People usually focus on the total amount of walking or the number of steps, thus ignoring the importance of walking patterns. This study demonstrates that changing your walking pattern to walk continuously for more than 10 to 15 minutes at least once a day can maximize cardiovascular health benefits."

Matthew Ahmadi, the first author of the study and a researcher at the University of Sydney, said, "For people who are less physically active, walking continuously for a set period rather than taking short walks here and there can be beneficial for health. Even adding just one or two sessions of 10 to 15 minutes of continuous walking each day can yield significant health benefits."

Experts advise trying to walk a little longer each time whenever possible. Practical ways to incorporate this into daily life include: getting off the bus one stop early, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, taking a 15-minute walk around the office after lunch, or setting a specific walking course with friends or family and walking together.