Micro Workouts Still Beneficial
Even 3 seconds of training can stimulate muscle strength.

The excuse of “no time for exercise” is undermined by study findings that underscore the message that any intentional effort toward creating a more active lifestyle is beneficial, including micro workouts.
College students who used micro workouts to challenge their muscles for 3 seconds per day, 5 days a week over a 1-month period (for a total of 60 seconds) increased muscle strength. Niigata University of Health and Welfare researchers in Niigata, Japan, conducted the small study to determine if it can impact muscle strength and size. Those who did an eccentric contraction increased muscle strength by 12%; concentric and isometric contractions achieved 6% and 7% gains, respecitvley. Muscle mass did not increase.
The research is available in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports (2022; doi:10.1111/sms.14138).
See also: Benefits of Exercise “Bursts”
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Archer, JD, MA, is an internationally acknowledged integrative health and mindfulness specialist, best-selling author of 16 fitness and wellness books translated into multiple languages and sold worldwide, award-winning health journalist, contributing editor to Fitness Journal, media spokesperson, and IDEA's 2008 Fitness Instructor of the Year. She's a 25-year industry veteran and former health and fitness educator at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, who has served on multiple industry committees and co-authored trade books and manuals for ACE, ACSM and YMCA of the USA. She has appeared on TV worldwide and was a featured trainer on America's Next Top Model.