The Science of Doing Less and Gaining More – Especially for Women
In 2024 an article named: „Sex Differences in Association of Physical Activity With All-Cause and Cardiovascular Mortality“ by Hongwei Ji, MD, et al was published.
Although I consider it a positive research, not only for the results, but also for the fact that so many women were involved. It does give us less excuses to not train. The often heard: I don’t have time for exercise and I don’t like strength training, are reduced to small, not realistic excuses.
The study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology followed over 400,000 adults for nearly 20 years. 55% of the adults were women aged between 18 and 85!
They were ordinary adults representative of the general population, which makes it even more applicable to all of us.
They discovered something remarkable: Women get significantly more health benefits from the same amount of exercise as men! We are not talking small differences, but almost double in some cases! The cardiovascular benefits showed an even bigger gap: women achieved a 36% reduction in cardiovascular mortality compared to just 14% for men.
Personal trainer or not, “I get enthusiastic when seeing researches done involving so many women and giving me a good excuse to spend some extra time indoors with my little family then leaving the house in the rainy autumn weather.
The Hard Numbers That Eliminate Our Excuses
For those „I don’t have time“ moments: Women achieved the same mortality reduction that men got from 300 minutes of cardio per week with just 140 minutes. That’s 20 minutes a day. If you’re telling me you can’t find 20 minutes while scrolling social media for an hour, we both know that’s not about time.
For the ‚I hate strength training‘ crowd: One session per week. ONE. That single session gives women the same benefit men get from three sessions. Still hate it? Fine, but you can surely tolerate one session weekly for a 19% reduction in mortality risk. Plus, strength training is proven to reduce risks of osteoporosis, diabetes, and high blood pressure and other diseases, but that’s beyond what this particular study measured.
What They Actually Found
The researchers tracked how exercise affected death rates – both all-cause and cardiovascular. Here’s what 20 years of data showed:
Cardio benefits:
- Men maxed out benefits at 300 min/week (18% lower mortality)
- Women hit equivalent benefits at 140 min/week and kept gaining up to 300 min/week (24% lower mortality)
- For vigorous exercise specifically: men peaked at 110 min/week, women at just 57 min/week
Strength training benefits:
- Women: 19% mortality reduction from regular strength training
- Men: 11% mortality reduction
- And the best part? Women needed fewer sessions for better results
Why Women’s Bodies Respond Better
The physiology is fascinating. Women have higher capillary density per muscle unit, meaning better oxygen delivery during exercise due to more blood. Different muscle fiber composition too – more Type I oxidative fibers that excel at endurance activities. When women strength train, they see greater relative improvements because they’re typically starting from a different baseline than men.
Think of it like this: men might have bigger engines, but women have better fuel efficiency.
Why This Challenges Everything
This research fundamentally challenges the „one-size-fits-all“ exercise guidelines we’ve been following for decades. Current German public health recommendations (like those from the WHO adopted by German health authorities) make no distinction between sexes – everyone gets told to aim for 150-300 minutes of moderate activity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous activity plus two strength sessions weekly. But if women achieve equivalent health benefits at roughly half the cardio volume and one-third the strength training frequency, shouldn’t guidelines reflect these biological differences?
The German „Nationale Bewegungsempfehlungen“ similarly recommend identical targets for all adults regardless of sex. Continuing to push identical targets for all may actually discourage women who don’t realize they’re already achieving meaningful health benefits at lower volumes. This isn’t about lowering standards – it’s about recognizing that optimal exercise prescriptions might need to account for biological sex differences, just as we adjust recommendations for age and health conditions.
Questions the study doesn’t yet answer.
The study didn’t tell us everything:
- What about HIIT versus steady-state cardio?
- Does the timing of exercise matter (morning vs evening)?
- How do rest days affect these outcomes?
- What about + 300 min training effectiveness (more than 5 hours a week)?
But here’s the thing: this research studied average women doing whatever exercise they chose – morning walks, evening gym sessions, classes, running – and the benefits appeared regardless.
There is no need to decide on a running class, Crossfit or swimming, if you’re currently doing zero exercise, regardless of what you will choose you will get benefits.
The „perfect“ workout you never do will always lose to the „imperfect“ one you actually complete. Start with whatever you can maintain – even 20 minutes daily or one strength session weekly. The benefits are there regardless of the details.
Before we get too excited, some caveats: All exercise was self-reported, which means people might have overestimated (or underestimated) their activity. The study only looked at leisure exercise, not occupational or household activity – so all that running after kids or physical work doesn’t count in these numbers.
They also focused on mortality, not fitness levels or athletic performance. So if you’re training for a marathon, these findings don’t mean you should cut your training in half. Although some other studies have suggested this might work.
So stop comparing yourself to your male training partner and feeling inadequate. Your workout is doing more for your longevity than you realize.
If you’re skipping strength training entirely: reconsider. One quality session weekly is meaningful, not token effort.
And if you love long workouts keep going! Benefits continue accumulating up to 300 minutes/week and plateau (not decline) after that.
Bottom Line
This research doesn’t lower the bar for women’s fitness. It reveals that women’s bodies are remarkably efficient at converting exercise into health benefits. That efficiency isn’t weakness – it’s optimization.
For the under-exercisers: Next time you’re debating whether that 20-minute session is „worth it“ or feeling guilty about doing „just“ one strength workout this week, remember: the science says you’re getting more bang for your buck than you think. The rainy autumn weather is no longer an excuse – your indoor workout is more valuable than you realized.
For the over-exercisers: Feeling guilty you didn’t hit your 6-day training quota? You already maximized your mortality benefits when you finished your third session. The study shows benefits plateau (not increase) after 300 minutes weekly. It’s okay to sit down and skip that run after work in the dark – you won’t lose the benefits you’ve already earned this week.
For everyone: Whether you’re struggling to start or struggling to rest, this data works in your favor. Women’s bodies are designed to thrive with moderate, consistent movement – not endless grinding. Quality beats quantity, and consistency beats perfection.
No more guilt, no more excuses. The data is in, and it supports whatever sustainable routine keeps you moving.
