Exercise snacks are short bouts of vigorous exercise that a person performs throughout the day. Possible health benefits include an increase in muscle mass and a reduction in blood sugar levels.

If a person cannot find time to go to the gym or take part in other activities, they may want to try exercise snacks to get closer to their exercise goal.

In this article, we outline what exercise snacks are and discuss their benefits. We also suggest some exercise snacks to try and when to contact a doctor.

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The current Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans state that adults should do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each week.

Exercise snacks are short bouts of vigorous exercise a person performs throughout the day. They might help someone who does not have time for longer periods of exercise meet the guidelines suggested amount.

Many people have a number of possible barriers to regular physical activity. These may include:

  • a lack of time
  • a lack of access to equipment
  • environmental constraints

For many people, these barriers prevent them from getting regular exercise. This promotes a sedentary lifestyle, which increases a person’s risk of developing several chronic diseases.

Exercise snacks are convenient and easy to implement. This can help a person exercise more frequently, overcoming possible barriers.

They commonly come in two main forms. These are 60-second bouts of vigorous exercise three to eight times a day and 10-minute bouts of gentle intermittent exercise two times a day.

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Research suggests that exercise snacks are often easy to implement. They can help people reduce the time they are inactive and increase the amount of physical activity.

Exercise snacks may also help promote physical function and reduce the incidence of falls and metabolic diseases in older people. Exercise snacks may also help decrease blood sugar levels, which can be helpful for people with diabetes. They may also promote cardiorespiratory fitness.

A small 2024 study investigated whether resistance exercise snacking (RES) could be an effective training approach for females.

The team carrying out the study split the participants into the intervention group (IG) or control group (CG). The IG carried out 10 minutes of RES on working days for 12 weeks. The CG continued to maintain their standard physical activity.

At the end of the trial, the people in the IG had significantly improved muscle mass. The study concluded that RES could be an effective exercise approach for promoting resistance training in inactive females who have a sedentary lifestyle.

A small 2019 study states that many people accept loss of muscle mass and strength as part of the aging process. The study aimed to investigate the effect of exercise snacking on leg strength and muscle size in older adults.

Participants in the study who carried out exercise snacks saw an increase in maximum leg pressing power and in the muscle mass in their thighs.

The study concluded that exercise snacking could be a promising strategy for older people to improve leg muscle function and size.

Below are some exercise snacks that a person may wish to try. A person should always aim to do small sets of these exercises that last a few minutes in total.

Squats

When performing a squat, a person should follow these steps:

  1. A person should start by standing with their feet slightly wider than hip-width apart.
  2. They should then shift most of their weight onto their heels and push their hips backwards and down. This creates a hinge-like movement at the hips and knees.
  3. They should then lower their hips until the thighs are parallel or almost parallel with the floor.
  4. Next, they should push their feet into the floor through the heels and extend the hips and knees, rising until they are back in the starting position.

People should ensure their back is straight throughout this exercise. They should also keep their knees in line with their feet.

Pushups

When performing a pushup, a person should follow these steps:

  1. A person should start by placing their palms flat on the floor and position their shoulders over their hands. They should then extend their body fully without any bends at the hips or the knees and place their feet together. This is the starting position.
  2. They should then slowly lower their body toward the floor until their chest or chin touches the floor. During this step, they should keep their torso rigid and their head aligned with their spine.
  3. They should then press upward through the arms until they reach the starting position once again.

It is important that a person does not allow their back to sag during a pushup.

Lunges

When performing a lunge, a person should follow these steps:

  1. A person should start by standing with their feet together, pulling their shoulders down and back without arching the lower back.
  2. They should then slowly lift one foot off the floor and step forward. Once the step is complete and the foot touches the floor, the person should transfer their body weight into the forward foot.
  3. They should then drop their hips toward the floor, lowering their body until the front thigh is parallel to the floor. If they cannot get fully parallel, then they can continue lowering their body until they are in a comfortable position.
  4. They should then hold this position for a short while before pushing off with their forward foot and returning to the starting position.

A person should try to avoid sideways tilting or upper body swaying when carrying out a lunge.

Calf raises

When performing calf raises, a person should follow these steps:

  1. A person should start by standing 6 to 12 inches away from a wall with their feet hip-width apart. They should then extend their arms and place their palms on the wall level with their chest.
  2. They should then slowly lift their heels off the floor, keeping their knees extended. During this phase, they should use their hands to support their body on the wall.
  3. They should hold the raised position briefly.
  4. The person should then lower their heels back down toward the floor to the starting position.

Walking

Some people consider short bouts of walking a form of exercise snack. Short bouts of walking is a good way to interrupt prolonged sitting.

According to the Arthritis Foundation, there are a number of possible benefits of walking, including improving the following:

  • circulation
  • mood
  • bone strength
  • joint support
  • sleep

A person could speak with a doctor if they experience a sports injury that does not recover with rest, ice, compression, and elevation.

Factors that can increase a person’s risk of injury when exercising include:

  • using incorrect exercise techniques
  • increasing the intensity of training too quickly
  • running or jumping on hard surfaces
  • overtraining, such as:
    • training too often
    • training too frequently
    • training for too long
  • not wearing the proper equipment when exercising
  • a prior injury

Common sports injuries include:

Exercise snacks are short bouts of vigorous exercise that a person can perform throughout the day.

They typically take a few minutes to complete a small set, so they may be easier to incorporate into a routine than longer workouts.

Exercise snacks can help people increase the amount of physical activity they do and may have a range of health benefits.

Examples a person may want to try include squats, pushups, and lunges.