We all know that regular exercise is one of the best ways to live a long and healthy life. From walking to strength training and mindful movement, getting active is simply a non-negotiable when it comes to disease prevention and improving longevity.

Despite that, women are still lagging behind our male counterparts when it comes to exercising, with research showing that girls and women do less activity than boys and men. And that’s a shame for many reasons, not least because new research has found that women gain greater benefits than men from doing any kind of exercise.

The new observational study, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, found that we reap the rewards of working out sooner, too. The scientists hope that these findings will encourage more women to get active and improve their health. 

“We hope this study will help everyone, especially women, understand they are poised to gain tremendous benefits from exercise,” says report co-author Dr Susan Cheng, cardiologist at the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai, Los Angeles. “It is an incredibly powerful way to live healthier and longer. Women on average tend to exercise less than men and hopefully these findings inspire more women to add extra movement to their lives.”       

The 20-year study collected data from over 400,000 adults in the US, and the findings were stark. Women who engage in physical activity were 24% less likely to die from any cause, compared to active men – whose overall mortality was just 15% lower.

Not only this, but women actually needed to do less exercise than their male counterparts to show benefits: the team found that women’s risk of premature death from any cause reduced by 18% after 140 minutes of moderate exercise (compared with being inactive), while, by contrast, men needed more than double the same type of exercise per week for a similar gain, at 300 minutes.

And there’s more good news – the benefits apply regardless of the type of exercise. Women who participated in strength-training showed a huge 30% reduced risk of cardiovascular-related deaths, compared to 11% of men, while 110 minutes of weekly vigorous aerobic exercise showed a 24% reduced risk of death for women and a 19% reduced risk for men.   

As you’d expect, the reasoning behind these findings is complicated, but the researchers say it’s most likely down to differences in physiology and anatomy. Women tend to have to work physically harder at the same activity as men, who are likely to have increased lung capacity and larger hearts than women.

But regardless of reasoning, the salient point is that some exercise is always better than none, especially for women.

“Even a limited amount of regular exercise can provide a major benefit, and it turns out this is especially true for women,” says Dr Cheng. “Taking some regular time out for exercise, even if it’s just 20-30 minutes of vigorous exercise a few times each week, can offer a lot more gain than they may realise.”

Interestingly, the report notes that the benefits plateaued at 300 minutes (five hours) of moderate activity per week for both men and women – so even if you’re managing an hour a day Monday to Friday, you’re future-proofing your body. 

Images: Getty