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 The U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommend that adults do at
least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity weekly. But recent
studies suggest even short bouts of exercise can have positive
health effects.
Sworkit, a new fitness app for iPhone and Android devices, takes
users through workouts as short as five minutes that can be done
anywhere.
"We realized that a lot of people don’t have a lot of time, so we
created an app for people to squeeze in bite-sized increments of
exercise throughout their day where they don’t need to be at a gym
or use equipment,” said Benjamin Young, CEO of Washington,
D.C.-based company Nexercise, creator of the app.
The free app will put together a custom training circuit based on
what users want to focus on - strength, cardio, or stretching, for
how long, and the specific part of the body.
The routine is made up of 30-second exercises that are demonstrated
with videos, or users can create their own workouts with the app.
The Johnson & Johnson Official 7 Minute Workout app for iPhone and
Android devices also provides users with short fitness routines.
“We live in a fast-paced, addicted-to-speed society where everyone
is looking for quicker and faster solutions in all aspects of their
lives,” said Chris Jordan, director of exercise physiology at
Johnson & Johnson's Human Performance Institute.
The app employs videos to guide users through high-intensity circuit
training routines that are customized based on fitness level and
desired intensity.
“A lot of people are convinced they need to go to a fancy gym with
fancy equipment, but something like a squat arguably is more
beneficial and transferable to life than a leg press machine,”
Jordan explained.
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Users can customize about 1,000 different workouts on the app, which
is available in 30 countries.
Greg Wells, assistant professor of kinesiology at the University of
Toronto, said even small bursts of physical activity have a positive
effect.
“The physiology is such that you not only get a workout after the
short seven minutes you do it, but you’re also benefiting during the
period after, when your body is recovering. So it could actually be
30 minutes of physical stress and that's why these workouts can be
really effective," said Wells.
"But whether it's better than 40 minutes of interval training or an
hour run, yoga class, or weights, I'm not 100 percent sure we can
say that," he added.
Wells noted the surge in shorter workouts, including a 20-minute one
at a Toronto gym called Medx Precision Fitness, where clients can
exercise during a lunch break without changing clothes.
"It's getting people to do something. And that's what we have to
accomplish right now," he said.
(Editing by Patricia Reaney and Gunna Dickson)
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