One-minute activity recommended for ‘longer and healthier life’

A fitness specialist has highlighted how regular one-minute workouts could help you live a longer, healthier life. Sol Scheinmann, founder of Pilates Matters, recommends incorporating short bursts of intense activity into your daily routine.

“Most people mistakenly believe that improving their health requires hours at the gym,” he said. “But the science suggests that just one minute of the right kind of movement daily could significantly extend your life.”

Scheinmann praises high-intensity bursts of movement. This could involve sprinting in place, jumping jacks or quick burpees.

“What makes these micro-bursts so powerful is how they trigger a cascade of positive physiological changes throughout your entire body. When you suddenly push your body to maximum effort, even for just a minute, you activate systems that can dramatically improve your health outcomes,” said the Pilates enthusiast.

He referenced a study published in Nature Medicine, which focused on brief bursts of vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity embedded into everyday life rather than leisure time exercise. The results suggested that “small amounts of vigorous nonexercise physical activity are associated with substantially lower mortality.”

Participants who completed three bouts per day lasting for one or two minutes each showed a 38-40% reduction in all-cause and cancer mortality risk. The data also showed a 48-49% reduction in cardiovascular disease mortality risk.

According to Scheinmann, these brief activity bursts can benefit your brain, heart and metabolism. He explained: “These short bursts trigger what we call ‘metabolic disruption’,” he says. “Your body quickly mobilises energy stores and improves insulin sensitivity, which helps regulate blood sugar more effectively.”

Scheinmann added: “Regular spikes in heart rate improve your heart’s efficiency and strengthen its muscles.” He also said: “Many people report improved focus and mental sharpness.”

How to add more movement into your day:

• Sprint up the stairs instead of walking

• Do a minute of high-knee running in place while on a phone call

• Perform quick squat jumps before getting in the shower

• Do a minute of jumping jacks while waiting for your coffee to brew

Sharing advice, Scheinmann said: “Small bursts of wellness are often more sustainable than traditional exercise routines because they eliminate the biggest barriers—time constraints and motivation fatigue. When something takes just 60 seconds, it’s nearly impossible to make excuses about being too busy.

“These micro-actions also create less resistance psychologically since they don’t require the mental preparation of a full workout.”

He added: “The real magic happens through their cumulative impact. Each minute-long burst may seem trivial in isolation, but together they create profound physiological changes. Like compound interest for your health, these tiny investments made consistently over time yield remarkable returns in longevity and cellular function. This approach makes fitness achievable for everyone, regardless of their schedule or previous exercise habits.”

NHS guidelines say adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a week or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity a week, and they should do strengthening activities that work for all the major muscle groups at least twice a week.

To maintain good health, it’s also important to eat a varied, balanced diet. Getting enough quality sleep, quitting smoking, limiting alcohol, ditching fatty foods and drinking plenty of water will also help. All these things together, may help reduce your risk of falling ill with a chronic disease of illness, like high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.