Weekend Warrior Physical Activity Pattern and Mortality in Patients With Hypertension: A Prospective Cohort Study...

The health benefits of different moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) patterns, including weekend warrior and regularly distributed activity, in individuals with hypertension remain unclear. This study investigated associations between MVPA patterns and mortality and stroke outcomes in patients with hypertension.

A total of 52 838 participants from the UK Biobank with accelerometer data following hypertension were included. Participants were classified by weekly MVPA amounts and distribution: active weekend warrior, active regular, and inactive. Cox proportional hazards models examined associations between MVPA patterns and all-cause mortality, with secondary outcomes including stroke mortality, stroke, and ischemic stroke.

During a median follow-up of 7.5 years, 2636 all-cause mortality, 161 stroke mortality, 875 stroke, and 716 ischemic stroke events occurred. Compared with the inactive group, both active weekend warriors (hazard ratio [HR], 0.70 [95% CI, 0.64-0.77]; P<0.0001) and active regular (HR, 0.73 [95% CI, 0.65-0.82];P<0.0001) demonstrated ≈30% lower risk of all-cause mortality. Both active groups showed risk reduction trends for stroke mortality (active weekend warrior: HR, 0.85 [95% CI, 0.59-1.22]; active regular: HR, 0.87 [95% CI, 0.55-1.38]), stroke (HR, 0.86 [95% CI, 0.73-1.00] versus HR, 0.91 [95% CI, 0.75-1.10]), and ischemic stroke (HR, 0.83 [95% CI, 0.70-0.99] versus HR, 0.87 [95% CI, 0.70-1.08]), though these were not statistically significant.

Our findings underscore the health benefits of actively engaging in guideline-recommended MVPA for patients with hypertension, demonstrating a 30% mortality risk reduction whether they distribute MVPA throughout the week or concentrate MVPA within 1 to 2 days compared with physical inactivity.