30–60 minutes of strength training per week

People who engage in 30–60 minutes of strength training each week have a 10–20% lower risk of dying during that period compared to those who don’t train at all. Training beyond this amount won’t bring any extra benefit. Combining strength training with aerobic exercise yields the best results.

Cost

Doing bodyweight squats and push-ups costs nothing. Aim for 1–2 sessions per week, each lasting 20–30 minutes. The real challenge is fitting this into your weekly schedule.

Benefit

When multiple observational studies are pooled together (without subgroup analysis), individuals who perform strength training show a 10%–17% reduction in mortality risk relative to non‑trainers. This benefit peaks at roughly 30–60 minutes of weekly training, delivering a 10%–20% risk drop; more training does not further improve outcomes. Those who also do aerobic exercise enjoy an even lower mortality risk than those who do neither type of exercise.

Notes

These studies rely on follow‑up tracking, with participants self‑reporting their activity levels. The evidence supporting the notion that “excessive training can be detrimental” is quite weak, so there’s no need to cap training volume for that reason. For older adults, strength training also helps prevent falls and preserve muscle mass; those benefits are discussed in Section 1.

Sources · 1

1. Momma H 等 (2022). Muscle-strengthening activities are associated with lower risk and mortality in major non-communicable diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies. British Journal of Sports Medicine. doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2021-105061