EXERCISING on the weekend is enough to slash your risk of an early death, a study found.
“Weekend warriors” who worked out twice a week were just as healthy as those who did it every day.
GettyExercising on the weekend for at least two-and-a-half hours is enough to slash your risk of an early death, a study found[/caption]
They were 27 per cent less likely to suffer a heart attack than those who did no exercise.
Dr Patrick Ellinor, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, said: “Increasing physical activity, even concentrated within a day or two, may improve cardiovascular outcomes.”
Around 7.6million Brits live with heart or circulatory diseases, which kill more than 160,000 a year — a quarter of all deaths.
Coronary heart disease is the most common and increases your risk of both heart attack and stroke.
Countless studies have shown exercise at all ages can improve your heart health and reduce the risk of suffering a fatal complication.
But the latest study, published in JAMA, is the largest to look specifically at how when you work could affect how likely you are to suffer a heart attack or stroke.
Researchers tracked exercise levels of 89,000 adults who wore a movement tracker for a week between 2013 and 2015.
Around a third were classified as inactive — spending less than 150 minutes doing moderate to vigorous activity, such as jogging, cycling or using an elliptical, a week.
Just over four in 10 were “active weekend warriors”, doing more than 150 minutes over one or two days, while a quarter spread exercise of the same length over more days.
Compared to people who were inactive, those who spread out their exercise were 35 per cent less likely to have a heart attack.
Weekend warriors were 38 per cent less likely to suffer heart failure, while those spreading out exercise had a 36 per cent lower risk.
Likewise, weekend warriors were 21 per cent less likely to have a stroke, compared to a 17 per cent lower risk in those who spread out their exercise.
Dr Ellinor said: “Physical activity concentrated within one to two days was associated with similarly lower risk of cardiovascular outcomes to more evenly distributed activity.”