Association of the "Weekend Warrior" Exercise Pattern With Sarcopenia in Middle-Aged and Older Adults: Comparison
Bokun Kim1,2, Yosuke Osuka3, Yoshiro Okubo4
1Sport Science Innovation Institute, Dongguk University, Jung-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Purpose:
Although the "weekend warrior (WW)" physical activity (PA) pattern has known health benefits, its association with sarcopenia is unclear. This study examined whether the WW PA pattern is associated with a lower likelihood of sarcopenia compared with the inactive and regularly active (RA) PA patterns.
Methods:
This cross-sectional study included 28,918 participants. Individuals reporting ≥150 minutes per week of moderate PA, ≥75 minutes per week of vigorous PA, or ≥ 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous leisure-time PA were classified as "active." Within the active group, those exercising 1 to 2 days per week were categorized as WWs, and those exercising on ≥3 days per week were categorized as RA. Sarcopenia was defined as a sarcopenia index >2 SD below the sex-specific reference.
Results:
In a logistic regression adjusted for all covariates, WWs had significantly lower odds of sarcopenia compared with both inactive (OR 0.16; 95% CI, 0.07-0.35) and RA individuals (OR 0.25; 95% CI, 0.11-0.56). RA participants also showed reduced odds compared with the inactive group (OR 0.64; 95% CI, 0.52-0.79). Regarding PA volume, the Kruskal-Wallis test indicated that RA participants participate in more moderate-intensity PA (RA 159.3 vs WW 125.3 min/wk), whereas WWs engaged in more vigorous-intensity PA (RA 32.4 vs WW 47.1 min/wk).
Conclusions:
The WW PA pattern was associated with a lower prevalence of sarcopenia compared with both inactive and RA individuals, suggesting that concentrated, infrequent but high-intensity activity may help reduce sarcopenia risk-particularly for those with limited time.
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