You only need 11 minutes of exercise a day to live longer.

 

Are you as shocked to read that as I am?  For years we have been hearing that you need 60 minutes of exercise a day to be healthier - an amount that most people consider to be unreachable.  Now it turns out that while 35 minutes a day is the exercise sweet spot, even 11 minutes a day of moderate exercise will improve longevity significantly. (Reynolds, 2020)

 

So, why the change?  Better data.  What made it better?  It wasn't based on consumer surveys. 

 

Ask a person how many hours they sat still yesterday and you will get a wrong answer.  Ask a person how many minutes they exercised yesterday and you will get a wrong answer.  Why?  Because most of us aren't tuned in enough to our actions to be accurate when we are asked to recap them.

 

That's why we need to seek actual behavioral data when we do research.

 

A new study published in The British Journal of Sports Medicine in November analyzed the exercise habits of 44,000 middle-aged and older individuals based on the data from the fitness trackers that they wore.  (Ekelund, Tarp, Fagerland, et al, 2020)

 

What they found is that people can be divided into three groups - less than 11 minutes of exercise a day, 11 minutes to 35 minutes of exercise a day and 35+ minutes of exercise a day. 

 

While the latter group lived the longest.  The middle group didn't do so badly either.  With as little as 11 minutes of exercise a day. 

 

That's a low enough bar that some people who got discouraged by the 60 minute threshold might be inspired to participate and reap the rewards.  But first they have to know about the new findings.  So spread the word.   

 

11 minutes of exercise a day.  

 

Say it over and over again until people actually hear it.

 

 

Reynolds, G. (2020, December 2)  11 Minutes of Exercise a Day May Help Counter the Effects of Sitting.  nytimes.com.  Retrieved December 16, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/well/move/exercise-sitting-longevity.html

 

Ekelund U, Tarp J, Fagerland MW, et al

Joint associations of accelero-meter measured physical activity and sedentary time with all-cause mortality: a harmonised meta-analysis in more than 44 000 middle-aged and older individuals

British Journal of Sports Medicine 2020;54:1499-1506.  Retrieved December 16, 2020, from

https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/54/24/1499

If you want to communicate better, consider a different medium.

Many of my Baby Boomer friends have admitted that they had to learn to text because it was the only way their kids would communicate with them. :-)

So when I heard that kids were doing PowerPoints to communicate with their parents I was highly amused.  Turnabout is fair play. (Rosman, 2018)

It also reminded me of the time in college that I sent my dad a balance sheet with an outstanding liability instead of a letter simply asking for money.  He was an accountant so I thought it would be more persuasive.

And that's what it's all about.

These days when I make a new acquaintance one of the first things I ask them is how they prefer to communicate.  I still have some friends that want to talk on the phone and arrange an in-person meeting.  How retro!

Personally I prefer email.  But that's because I'm really wordy. 

Most people prefer shorter communications.  That's one of the reasons infographics are so popular.  And we know from research that visuals are extremely memorable. 

Perhaps that 's why emojis are gaining steam.  After all a smiley face is universal. ;-)

Rosman, K. (2018, December 20)  PowerPoint Is the Most Efficient Way for Kids to Manage Their Parents.  nytimes.com.  Retrieved July 23, 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/style/kids-who-use-powerpoint-to-ask-for-things.html

I just caught up with an article from Saturday's Wall Street Journal about using emojis at work. 

Here's the link :-)

Mims, C. (2019, July 25) Yes, You Should Be Using Emojis at Work.  Retrieved July 25, 2019, from,   https://www.wsj.com/articles/yes-you-actually-should-be-using-emojis-at-work-11563595262