Exercise

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Within the scientific literature, exercise snacking or micro-dosing refers to the practice of brief and typically intense bouts of exercise. Think of a total duration of 1-5 minutes per snack, with several intervals of action and short rest, and with the exercise demanding enough to leave you relatively breathless.

Whilst not always the same, Sprint Interval Training (SIT), some High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and Reduced Exertion High Intensity Interval Training (REHIIT) are specific approaches.

Human trials provide evidence that exercise snacking, including within already healthy, active individuals, can provide metabolic benefits, including improved VO2 max, aerobic and anaerobic performance.

Further benefit, if you snack before or after a meal, is of faster post-meal clearance of glucose and triglycerides (fat) from circulation.

Beyond the metabolic benefits, there are several practical advantages, including -

1. Being able to exercise when you otherwise could not, meaning different times, different spaces, and in different clothing i.e., no need to travel to a gym, change and shower

2. Breaking up periods of sedentary time, which even for active people remain as a risk factor for metabolic dysfunction and disease

3. Increase your total volume of exercise, which is useful for most people who are not hard-charging athletes

4. Enjoy (or endure) more intense individual sets. Research shows that longer rest breaks between sets enables more intense sets. This is usually referring to the minutes between lifting weights, but when you exercise snack, you are also practically taking very long breaks between "sets".

Some of the key papers used within this brief for further reading.

Effects of short sprint interval training on aerobic and anaerobic indices: A systematic review and meta-analysis
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35090181/

Exercise Snacks: A Novel Strategy to Improve Cardiometabolic Health
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34669625/

Sprint exercise snacks: a novel approach to increase aerobic fitness
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30847639/