There are two kinds of runners in this world: those who run because they genuinely love it, and those who force themselves to plod along because they know it’s meant to be good for them (even though it bloody hurts).
If you’ve ever wondered if there’s a bare minimum amount of running you can get away with while still reaping all those promised health benefits (people in the second running category, we’re looking at you), we have some good and bad news for you.
The good: yes, this magical number does exist. The bad: it’s not quite the “13 minutes once a fortnight” you were hoping for.
New findings published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings claim running once or twice a week for 50 minutes cumulatively — no more than roughly 10km per week — is sufficient to protect against chronic and cardiovascular disease and early death by any cause.
Watch the Paper Tiger team demonstrate a quick legs exercise. (Post continues after video.)
Is it just us, or is 10 kilometres a week still a significant amount of running? Our calves are burning just thinking about it.
On the other hand, those who ran more than 32km per week enjoyed more cardio benefits but were associated with a higher risk of injury, death and heart dysfunction. Not so smug now, huh? (Just kidding. We love all you "running people".)