The Minimum Effective Dose

How little actually moves the needle — and why 10,000 steps was a marketing slogan, not science.

The top 3

1. 7,000 Steps, Not 10,000: A meta-analysis of 15 cohorts found death risk plateaus near 6,000-8,000 steps; the 10,000 target came from a 1965 pedometer ad.
2. 11 Minutes a Day: Cambridge pooled 30 million person-years: 11 minutes/day of moderate activity was linked to 23% lower risk of premature death.
3. The Weekend Warrior Loophole: Cramming a week's exercise into 1-2 days lowers mortality about as much as spreading it across the week.

Sources

• The Lancet Public Health
• University of Cambridge

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