Now you have no excuses: a new US study finds that even one minute of high-intensity exercise -- such as walking briskly or taking the stairs -- can benefit your health.
 

Researchers at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City analyzed data on more than 4,500 adults in a study on how exercise contributes to good health. Head researcher Catherine Zick and her team found that minute-long bursts of high-intensity exercise were associated with lower body mass index and other benefits similar to those resulting from 10-minute bouts of moderate exercise, such as walking normally, LiveScience reports.

Findings appear online in the American Journal of Health Promotion.
 

This May, a new study published in the journal PLOS One also found that overweight, inactive men can get fitter and healthier with just four minutes of vigorous high-intensity training three times per week.