January 20, 2026

expert reaction to types of physical activity and mortality

Two cohort studies published in BMJ Medicine looks at types of physical activity and mortality.

Prof Tom Yates, Professor of Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Health, University of Leicester, said:

“Physical activity was measured by self-report, which introduces bias and weaken associations with health. As such the association reported here are likely to be underestimated.  For example, previous research using objectively measured total physical activity suggests the risk of all-cause mortality halves for active compared to inactive populations.

“Overall, the broad conclusions of the study are consistent with the evidence; any additional physical activity is beneficial for health in inactive populations from whatever mode, but with associations for walking activity being particularly strong and consistent. The new finding in this study was that physical activity variety may also be good for health. In some ways this might be analogous to diet, variety in and off itself could have health benefits”

Dr Andrew Scott, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Exercise Physiology, University of Portsmouth, said:

• Does the press release accurately reflect the science?

“The reference to extending lifespan is not exactly correct since the study explains an association between varied physical activities rather than causal, i.e. People who have the time, opportunity and resources to undertake varied activities will live well in other aspects of their life.

• Is this good quality research?  Are the conclusions backed up by solid data?

“The quality is good as far as database analyses go because whilst there are strong associations that have been analysed cross-sectionally between this prospective database of people going about their everyday life the data is not from an intervention where sufficient numbers of participants have undertaken varied activities compared to singular exercise modes and their health outcomes compared.

• How does this work fit with the existing evidence about physical activity and longevity?

“This is an interesting study in that variety of physical activities are associated with decreased mortality, irrespective of total physical activity level, suggesting that varying the exercise mode might be more effective in maintaining health than a single preferred exercise approach.

• Have the authors accounted for confounders? 

“Participants’ age, time of year of data collection, ethnicity, family history of myocardial infarction or cancer, body mass index, postmenopausal hormone use, smoking status, alcohol intake, total energy intake, healthy eating, social integration index and baseline high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol were considered as confounders in the analyses of the data.

• With what degree of certainty can the conclusions of this study be drawn?

“The dataset is particularly large, and the analyses have been well conducted so certainty that these associations between varied physical activities and mortality risk are strong – varied approaches will physiologically and mentally tax our bodies in different ways and reflect the different ways we are active during the day or week. Certainty that of a change in physical activity behaviours will enhance a person’s longevity have not been analysed in this study though.

• Are there important limitations to be aware of?

“The limitations of this research are people potentially changing their habitual physical activity choices in favour of the varied approach and not receiving the same benefits as their usual activities. The data in this study did not investigate changing participants’ behaviours.”

Prof Anna Whittaker, Professor of Behavioural Medicine, Co-Director – Centre for Research and Innovation in Sport (CRIS) at University of Stirling, said:

“This large-scale longitudinal study adds to what we know about the impact of physical activity on mortality by showing that engagement in a range of different types of physical activity is beneficial for longevity, independently of the total amount of physical activity engaged in. This is likely due to the different types of activity having different physiological effects and helping to meet all of the aspects currently outlined in physical activity guidelines ((i.e. moderate intensity exercise, resistance exercise, vigorous intensity exercise, flexibility work, recovery activities). As noted, observational studies cannot rule out reverse causality or unmeasured confounders, but this study considered a range of important covariates. Strengths of the study are its large size and longitudinal nature including repeated measures of physical activity engagement to pick up continuous engagement rather than a snapshot in time. Limitations are the acknowledged limits of self-reported activity which may inaccurately estimate time engaging in PA as well as intensity, but in this size of study, the alternatives are few. It is also limited by exclusion of measurement of PA once participants became ill. This is important to reduce the impact of reverse causation but also means we cannot tell whether the benefits of PA to longevity remain even after diagnosis of frequently occurring diseases like CVD or diabetes, or how these alter from pre-diagnosis levels. However, this research indicates that participating in a range of physical activities that you enjoy can bring multiple benefits beyond adding to the total amount of PA engaged in.”

‘Physical activity types, variety, and mortality: results from two prospective cohort studies’ by Han Han et al. was published in BMJ Medicine at 23:30 UK time on Tuesday 20^th January 2026. 

DOI: 10.1136/bmjmed-2025-001513

Declared interests

Dr Andrew Scott: “I have no conflicts.”

Prof Anna Whittaker: “No CoI”

For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.