Science is clear: exercise doesn't help that much for losing weight. However, it does help with a staggering variety of other conditions. Whether it's osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, heart health, cholesterol levels, depression, chronic fatigue, or even the symptoms of Parkinson's disease, quality science has demonstrated that exercise helps.
And as Aaron Carroll explains below, the amount of exercise in these studies is pretty moderate. A half hour of simple brisk walking, done five times per week, gets you most of the way there. No need to kill yourself with CrossFit or Navy SEAL routines to stay healthy. Ryan Cooper
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How the UK's electric car plans took a wrong turnThe Explainer Car manufacturers are struggling to meet 'stringent' targets for electric vehicle sales
-
Irish election: what's at stake?Today's Big Question Weakened centrist coalition of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil parties may have to share power with conservative independents
-
Best UK literary festivals of 2025The Week Recommends From Hay and Cheltenham to Henley and Oxford, here are some of the year's top events for book lovers
-
ACA opens 2025 enrollment, enters 2024 raceSpeed Read Mike Johnson promises big changes to the Affordable Care Act if Trump wins the election
-
McDonald's sued over E. coli linked to burgerSpeed Read The outbreak has sickened at least 49 people in 10 states and left one dead
-
Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cowSpeed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and earlySpeed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
-
US bans final type of asbestosSpeed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
-
Seattle Children's Hospital sues Texas over 'sham' demand for transgender medical recordsSpeed Read Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton subpoenaed records of any Texan who received gender-affirming care at the Washington hospital
-
Afghanistan has a growing female suicide problemSpeed Read The Taliban has steadily whittled away women's and girls' rights in Afghanistan over the past 2 years, prompting a surge in depression and suicide
-
US life expectancy rose in 2022 but not to pre-pandemic levelsSpeed Read Life expectancy is slowly crawling back up
