Exercising in the morning, afternoon or evening would not have the same health benefits.
We know: playing sport offers many benefits for physical and mental health and helps reduce the risk of diseases, particularly cardiovascular pathologies, cancers and diabetes. According to’WHO, adults must devote during the week, 150 minutes of moderate-intensity endurance activity or at least 75 minutes of sustained-intensity endurance activity, or an equivalent combination of moderate-intensity activity and supported. Recently, a study conducted by researchers at the University of Sydney and published in the journal Diabetes Care found that engaging in physical activity at a certain time of day was associated with greater health benefits, particularly among people with obesity.
To define the ideal moment, researchers analyzed the health data of nearly 30,000 adults with an average age of 62, all of whom were obese. Among them, 3,000 participants had also been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. They were followed for almost 8 years, using a portable device called an “accelerometer” attached to the wrist continuously for 24 hours per day. day for 7 days at the start of the study. This device made it possible to measure the physical activity of the participants and to classify them according to the time of day: those who did it in the morning, those who did it in the afternoon or those who did it in the evening. Physical activities included sessions of at least 3 continuous minutes of so-called “moderate to vigorous aerobic” physical activity, i.e. an activity that increases the heart rate and shortness of breath such as brisk walking, climbing stairs, or exercise. structured like running, professional work, or even vigorous cleaning of the house.
During follow-up, researchers recorded 1,425 deaths, 3,980 cardiovascular events, and 2,162 microvascular dysfunction events. The study results showed that subjects who did the majority of their moderate-to-vigorous aerobic physical activity between 6 p.m. and midnight were those who had the lowest risk of developing cardiovascular disease and dying prematurely from it. This study suggests that the timing of physical activity may be an important part of recommendations for the future management of obesity and type 2 diabetes, as well as preventive health care in general. “Exercise is by no means the only solution to the obesity crisis, but this research suggests that people who can schedule their activity at certain times of the day may better offset some of these health risks”, said Dr. Angelo Sabag, a professor of exercise physiology who participated in the study. Of course, this study is only observational and needs to be supplemented by more in-depth studies to establish causal links.