Does microdosing exercise really work? Is it enough to level up your fitness and make any kind of beneficial impact on your health? I’ve covered previous studies on how exercise snacking can improve cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic health, but what about physically inactive individuals with little experience with exercise? Do they still achieve benefits from these short bouts of movement? Let’s delve into the research.

The meta-analysis

In a meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the researchers evaluated the effects of brief bouts of exercise spread throughout the day, known as exercise snacks, on muscular and cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic health outcomes. The study authors were especially interested in the impact on the following factors:

• Muscle strength
• Fitness
• Heart health
• Blood pressure
• Body fat
• Cholesterol

The study involved 414 physically inactive adults of varying ages. In this case, the researchers considered exercise snacks to be five-minute workouts performed at least twice per day, at least three times a week, for at least two weeks, rather than longer sessions in single blocks. The meta-analysis included randomised controlled trials of adults and older adults comparing those who did exercise snacking with those who didn’t exercise at all. Exercise snacking lasted for 4-12 weeks in the studies. The workouts varied in intensity from moderate-to-vigorous to near-maximal.

The results

Here are the results of the meta-analysis:

• Exercise snacking enhances heart and lung fitness. The adults who stayed committed to these shorter workouts had better endurance.
• Exercise snacking helped older adults enhance their muscular endurance and become tired less quickly, though more studies are needed specifically on this.
• These shorter exercise bursts didn’t improve muscle strength or the ability to produce force. Typically, building strength requires using heavier loads or committing to longer training sessions. However, the studies in this analysis ended after 12 weeks.
• These mini workouts scattered throughout the day didn’t change medical markers over those 4-12 weeks, such as body fat, cholesterol, metabolic health, and blood pressure.
• 91% of participants completed their exercise sessions, and 83% stuck to their program requirements, showing high compliance with exercise snacking.

The bottom line

It’s important to note that this research involved adults who were physically inactive and had little to no experience with exercise, and the studies ended after 12 weeks. The bottom line is that if you’re physically inactive now, several short bursts of movement throughout the day over 4-12 weeks can definitely improve your fitness. You’ll be making strides, or shall we say movements in the right direction, but it might not be enough to make significant metabolic changes in your health, such as your blood pressure, body composition, or cholesterol.