Ladies, lace up for 20 minutes. Guys? Double it—or risk a cardiac cliff. A blockbuster Chinese study tracking 85,000 Brits via smartwatches just exposed a brutal gender gap: Men need twice the weekly workout as women to slash coronary heart disease odds by the same margin. Published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, the data flips fitness scripts and demands tailored sweat plans.
The Workout Math That Stings
Researchers strapped accelerometers on participants free of heart disease at baseline, logging moderate-to-vigorous bursts—think brisk walks, cycling, planks. Over nearly eight years:
- 150 minutes/week (standard guideline):
- Women: 22% lower disease risk, 70% lower death risk.
- Men: 17% lower disease, 19% lower death.
- 300 minutes/week (5 hours):
- Women: 21% risk drop.
- Men: 11%.
- For ~30% disease prevention:
- Women: 250 minutes.
- Men: 530 minutes (nearly 9 hours).
- For 30% mortality shield:
- Women: 51 minutes.
- Men: 85 minutes.
Every extra 30 minutes weekly? Women gain 2.9% risk reduction; men, 1.9%. Age averaged 61 for onset tracking (57% women), 66 for mortality (30% women). Adjustments for BMI, smoking, and more held the gap firm.
Why the Guy Penalty?
Fox News medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel broke it down on America’s Newsroom: “Men stack the deck against ourselves.”
- Testosterone: Spikes “bad” cholesterol.
- Belly fat: Inflames arteries.
- Bad habits: More smoking, drinking, couch time.
Women rule until menopause—then risks climb, but slowly. “Men need the grind to counter biology,” Siegel said.
Your Gender-Smart Sweat Plan
Women: Hit 150–250 minutes moderate (fast walk, yoga flow) or 75–125 vigorous (run, HIIT). Heart bonus: massive.
Men: Aim 300–530 moderate or 150–265 vigorous. No shortcuts—consistency is king.
Wearables? Gold. The study pushes “sex-specific” tracking to close the “gender gap” in prevention.
Heart disease doesn’t discriminate—but exercise impact does. Men, clock in. Women, keep winning. Your ticker depends on it.
Source: Foxnews.com
Read also – “One Long Walk Beats Short Strolls for Heart Health”
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