Busy schedules often push exercise to the bottom of the priority list. But new research suggests that fitting in just one workout each week may still deliver meaningful health benefits.
ScienceDaily has highlighted a new study from the University of Hong Kong, published in Nature Communications, which examined whether completing all weekly exercise in one session could be as effective as spreading it across several days.
The study
Researchers recruited 315 Chinese adults who were overweight and had excess fat around their waist, a condition linked to a higher risk of heart disease and metabolic disorders.
Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups. Two groups completed the same amount of brisk interval walking, totalling 75 minutes each week.
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One group performed the entire workout in a single session, while the other split the exercise across three weekly sessions. A third group attended regular health education sessions instead of exercising.
The programme lasted 16 weeks, with researchers measuring body composition before the trial, immediately after it ended and again four months later.
Comparable results
According to the findings, both exercise groups experienced similar improvements despite following different schedules.
Participants reduced their body fat, body fat percentage and waist circumference, while also improving their cardiovascular fitness compared with the control group.
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The researchers found little difference between completing the weekly exercise in one session or spreading it across three workouts, suggesting that the total amount of activity may matter more than how often it is performed.
A practical option
The findings do not suggest that exercising more frequently is unnecessary. Instead, they indicate that a single weekly interval workout could be a realistic alternative for adults who struggle to fit multiple exercise sessions into busy routines.
The researchers believe this approach could make regular physical activity more achievable for people with central obesity, while still providing measurable health benefits.
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