Just keep walking! A walk-a-day keeps your doctor away, study finds

One short walk a day could be the key to radically reducing your chances of premature death according to new research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. 

The ambitious study was one of the largest of its kind and wanted to establish a connection between physical activity and a more prolonged and healthy life. 

Researchers analyzed data from over 30 million people according to The Washington Post’s Gretchen Reynolds and found that one simple solution could prevent most people from suffering from chronic disease or premature death.  

“We found evidence of dose-dependent associations between increasing non-occupational physical activity and a wide range of mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer outcomes,” the authors of the study wrote in their conclusion. 

“Appreciable population health benefits might be gained from increasing physical activity levels of people who are inactive to just half the current health recommendations,” the authors added.

More benefits could be seen once reaching the upper recommended level of physical activity, which they pinned at somewhere around 150 minutes per week of brisk walking. 

The study’s researchers also found that you wouldn’t even need to walk for very long in order to start seeing the long-term beneficial impacts of adding a daily stroll to your routine. 

“Walking for at least 11 minutes every day could lower your risk of premature death by almost 25 percent,” wrote Gretchen Reynolds based on her analysis of the study.

“Its findings show that even small amounts of exercise contribute to substantial improvements in longevity and can lower risks of developing or dying of heart disease and many types of cancer,” Reynolds added. 

Reynold added that the most promising data from the study showed that as many as one in ten premature deaths could be prevented by adding some daily activity. 

Today health correspondent Agnes Pawlowski also reported on the study and noted that you don’t need to only walk in order to see the benefits of adding some daily activity to your life. 

Pawlowski wrote that “about 75 minutes a week of moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking, dancing, riding a bike, playing tennis or hiking” would be okay. 

“Anything that makes the heart beat faster but isn’t so intense that it leaves a person breathless,” is fine, Pawalski added.

“It was enough to reduce the risk of developing heart disease by 17% and cancer by 7%, and came with a 23% lower risk of premature death,” the health reporter added. 

The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommends that most people should get a minimum of 150 minutes of “moderate-intensity aerobic activity” each week according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

You can cut that number in half if you get 75 minutes of “vigorous-intensity physical activity, or an equivalent each week,” the CDC added.