Most people don’t really like to run, and while we get that, it’s a very important part of cardiovascular fitness.
So much, in fact, that even a little bit of running can significantly lower a person’s risk of sudden death.
That may sound incredible, but new research — which built on existing studies — nevertheless supports the finding.
Researchers from Australia, Austria, Finland, and Thailand performed a comprehensive analysis on available evidence, and concluded that any amount of running significantly lowers one’s risk of death from any cause.
That’s really incredible.
A report noted:
The researchers say they were motivated to perform the study because of a number of unknowns that still remained in reference to running’s health benefits. For example, it was never clear just how effective running is at preventing cardiovascular disease or cancer, or for that matter, exactly how much running an individual must participate in to reap such benefits.
So, in an effort to try and answer some of these questions, the research team reviewed any available and relevant published research, conference presentations, and doctoral dissertations. Specifically, they looked for studies that had investigated the association between running and subsequent risk of death from all causes, cancer, or cardiovascular issues.
A meta-analysis of 14 studies encompassing 232,149 people who had had their health tracked for periods of time between 5.5 and 35 years found that within the long time frame, 25,951 of the included study participants passed away.
From the data, researchers determined that any amount of running was associated with a 27 percent lower risk of death from all causes, in comparison to participants who reported never running.
Now, imagine for a moment how much lower your risk of death would be if you incorporated more running into a daily fitness regimen.
At Survival Legion, we often incorporate running — especially sprints — into our workouts.
We do this because studies like this one have proven time and again that running even a little bit helps you live longer, and who doesn’t want to do that?
And living longer should also be about living a longer, higher-quality life.
Improving your fitness can improve your quality of life. And just a little bit of running — or sprinting, or ramping up your cardio with some high-energy routines — will help you live longer.
There’s science to prove it!