We all know that exercising is essential for heart health. But if you've ever felt unmotivated and thought to yourself, "something is better than nothing," you may have truly hit the nail on the head. New research from University College London and the University of Sydney suggests that just five minutes of certain daily exercises can lower blood pressure. Moreover, increasing that time to 20 minutes can significantly reduce one's heart disease risk.
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Published in the journal Circulation, the study explored the relationship between daily movement and blood pressure using data from 14,761 participants who wore activity trackers.
Researchers examined six activity categories: sleep, sedentary (sitting), slow walking, fast walking, standing, and vigorous activity such as running, cycling, or climbing stairs, according to a press release outlining the study.
They found that an additional five minutes of vigorous activity could lower systolic blood pressure (SBP) by 0.68 points and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) by 0.54 points
However, it's important to note that these results are not considered "clinically meaningful."
That threshold is reached after 20 to 27 minutes of vigorous activity and "10 to 15 minutes of reallocation of time in other behaviors into additional exercise," according to the study. Here, they observed a 2-point reduction in SBP and a 1-point reduction in DPB—"equivalent to an approximately 10% reduction in cardiovascular disease risk," the press release states.
This is still a positive outcome, Arun Manmadhan, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, told NBC News.
"This study tells us that a starting point of five to 10 minutes a day can help," he explained. "The blood pressure improvement from five minutes alone is not that meaningful—it’s less than one point. But you can ramp up from that to the point where there is a clinical improvement to your cardiovascular risk profile."
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In other words, starting somewhere is an amazing first step. This is especially true since heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Along with high cholesterol and smoking, high blood pressure is one of the biggest risks for heart disease.
The CDC recommends at least 150 minutes a week of moderate physical activity to reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and more.
"The good news is that whatever your physical ability, it doesn’t take long to have a positive effect on blood pressure," said Jo Blodgett, MD, first author of the study from UCL Surgery & Interventional Science and the Institute of Sport, Exercise & Health, per SciTechDaily. "What’s unique about our exercise variable is that it includes all exercise-like activities, from climbing the stairs to a short cycling errand, many of which can be integrated into daily routines."
"For those who don’t do a lot of exercise, walking did still have some positive benefits for blood pressure," Blodgett added. "But if you want to change your blood pressure, putting more demand on the cardiovascular system through exercise will have the greatest effect."
