There is no doubt that daily physical activity physical activity is beneficial to health. It is an important part of prevention and sometimes support of the treatment process. It is still to be determined the time of day when practicing sports brings the most benefits.

Any activity, even moderate, such as brisk walking, dancing, daily stair climbing improves the body's fitness. For years, many research centers have been conducting studies on how much time to devote to sports during the day, as well as the best time to increase the effectiveness of exercise. In April 2024, the journal Diabetes Care published the results of a study conducted by researchers at the University of Sydney on the relationship between playing sports at certain times of the day and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality from it. The main goal was to find out at what times physical activity is safest and does not increase the risk of heart attack or stroke, and has the most benefits, both preventively and when treating cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes.

Nearly 30,000 people were invited to participate in the study, including those with obesity, and those with obesity with concurrent type 2 diabetes, and were observed for eight years. Participants in the study were measured using an accelerometer attached to the wrist, among other things, sports activity understood not only as vigorous aerobic exercise, but also moderate exertion of at least 3 minutes. A "healthy" reference group, a group of obese people, a group with obesity and diabetes were created. The groups were also divided into those doing sports in the morning and in the evening. The choice of exercise time is an individual matter and depends on the preferences and time available to the person. Morning exercise their followers can start the day energetically with high levels of endorphins. Proponents of evening activity, on the other hand, claim that it is at the end of the day that their body is at maximum physiological capacity. Choosing the best time is an individual matter and depends on a great many factors such as age, comorbidities, ability to relieve tension, metabolism and type of sport. However, regardless of the time of day, an important motivating factor for exercise is its impact on health. In the case of type 2 diabetes, regular physical activity has been proven to help regulate blood sugar levels by increasing cell sensitivity to insulin. Exercise promotes weight control, which is important because overweight and obesity are important risk factors for the development of type 2 diabetes. In addition, regular physical activity can improve the body's metabolic function, which can reduce the risk of insulin resistance, a condition that precedes type 2 diabetes. And for cardiovascular disease, regular physical activity helps lower blood pressure, reduce levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides, and increase levels of good cholesterol (HDL). In addition, regular exercise improves heart function and blood circulation, which lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.

The Sydney researchers stress that by using objective measures of activity, the study can be considered significant for determining the time when exercise is least risky to health and most effective in reducing the risk of heart attack, or stroke. It was noted that, compared to the activity of a reference group (healthy people), physical activity among people who were obese or had type 2 diabetes in the evening was associated with the lowest mortality risk, as well as a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. However, Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, an author of the study, stresses that the next necessary step is further research to establish causal links between the timing of activity and recommendations for future treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes, as well as preventive health care in general. According to the researchers involved in the study, it is also worth considering that "exercise is by no means the only solution to the obesity crisis. However, it is possible to suggest from the results that individuals who are able to schedule their activity at specific times of the day may be more likely to offset some of the health risks." Currently, there are no specific guidelines for the safest time of day to engage in sports, but what is certain is that obese patients should be advised to devote at least 150 minutes per week to physical activity "during the weight loss phase," followed by 200-300 minutes of endurance exercise per week in the long term. This, in addition to preventive checkups once a year, is the best way to avoid serious health complications from cardiovascular disease. The basis for staying healthy is, of course, regularity.