A new study finds that longer, continuous walks are more beneficial for cardiovascular health than a few shorter strolls.

The study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, analyzed how walking affects the heart health of physically inactive adults. Researchers from the University of Sydney and the Universidad Europea in Spain discovered that taking a 15-minute daily walk — roughly 1,500 consecutive steps — is better for your heart than brief bursts of movement throughout the day.

While many people still believe that the “10,000 steps a day” rule is essential for heart health, experts say that number isn’t backed by science. “Aiming for 10,000 steps likely originated from a marketing campaign for a Japanese pedometer,” explained Dr. Sean Heffron, assistant professor of medicine at New York University Langone Health and the NYU Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease.

He added that while increasing overall daily steps is good for cardiovascular health, the new research shows that even walking fewer than 5,000 steps a day can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and death — especially when done in one continuous session.

The study followed 33,560 adults aged 40 to 79 who typically walked fewer than 8,000 steps daily, tracking them over eight years. Researchers found that physically inactive individuals could greatly improve their heart health by dedicating just 10 to 15 minutes a day to continuous walking.

Key Findings

• People who walked continuously for 10 to 15 minutes a day had only a 4% risk of experiencing a cardiovascular event, such as a heart attack or stroke. Those who walked for just five minutes a day faced a 13% risk.

• The benefits were especially strong among the least active participants — those walking 5,000 steps a day or fewer. In this group, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease dropped from 15% for those walking up to five minutes daily to 7% for those who walked up to 15 minutes daily.

• Among the most sedentary individuals (5,000 steps or fewer per day), the risk of death fell dramatically — from 5% for those walking in brief five-minute stretches to less than 1% for those who walked continuously for up to 15 minutes.

According to a University of Sydney news release, senior author Emmanuel Stamatakis emphasized that how you walk matters as much as how much you walk. “We tend to place all the emphasis on the number of steps or the total amount of walking but neglect the crucial role of patterns, for example ‘how’ walking is done,” he said. “This study shows that even people who are very physically inactive can maximize their heart health benefit by tweaking their walking patterns to walk for longer at a time, ideally for at least 10 to 15 minutes, when possible.”

Co-lead author Dr. Borja del Pozo Cruz from the Universidad Europea agreed. “Our research shows that simple changes can make all the difference to your health,” he said. “If you walk a little, set aside some time to walk more often and in longer sessions. Such small changes can have a big impact.”