Moderate Exercise for 15 Minutes Daily Improves Survival

Just as we expect less and less from students, they keep downsizing "exercise" recommendations.

The minimal amount of physical activity to reduce mortality risk is 15 minutes a day of moderate-intensity exercise, according to the results of a prospective cohort study reported online August 16 in The Lancet.

"Exercising at very light levels reduced deaths from any cause by 14 percent," said senior author Xifeng Wu, MD, PhD, professor and chair of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Department of Epidemiology, in a news release. "The benefits of exercise appear to be significant even without reaching the recommended 150 minutes per week based on results of previous research."

Just wait a bit longer. Soon they will advise against it.

Remember, though, that if you actually want to improve your fitness, you have to train, not exercise.