Why do some people live into the triple digits while others die prematurely in mid-life? It’s a complicated question, and often, it doesn’t boil down to just one factor. Certainly, no one can control how long they live completely, particularly when you consider that accidents are the third leading cause of death in the U.S.
That said, you can control how long you’ll likely live more than you probably realize. The risks of many of the other leading causes of death (including cardiovascular disease, cancer and strokes) can be drastically reduced by having healthy habits in place.
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Life-lengthening habits include eating a nutrient-rich diet, exercising regularly, not smoking, wearing sunscreen when you’re in the sun for extended periods of time, consistently getting enough sleep and having effective stress management habits in place.
But which of these habits is the most important when it comes to longevity? Part of what makes this question hard to answer is that many people who prioritize their well-being have more than one healthy habit in place. This can make it difficult to know if their longevity is due more to their diet than their exercise habits, for example.
That said, there’s one habit that’s so intricately connected to healthy lifespans that it’s hard not to believe that it’s one of, if not the, most important habit for longevity.
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The Habit That Matters Most for Longevity, According to Doctors
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If you want to adopt one habit that’s repeatedly shown to add years to your life, you can’t top living an active lifestyle. All three doctors and longevity specialists we talked to said that it’s hands-down a crucial habit for longevity.
“Physical activity doesn’t just strengthen your heart or burn calories. It reaches into nearly every organ system in your body and fundamentally changes your biology,” says Dr. Dawn Mussallem, DO, a lifestyle medicine doctor, Mayo Clinic consultant and chief medical officer at Fountain Life.
According to a study published in JAMA Network Open, people who live an active lifestyle have a 29 to 36% lower risk of all-cause mortality than people who are inactive. Dr. Massallem says that there are several reasons for this. One is that regular exercise strengthens the cardiovascular system, making it less susceptible to heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in the U.S.
Longevity physicianDr. Jennifer Timmons, MD, echoes this. “It affects you on a physiological level by improving your cardiovascular system, lowering your blood pressure, improving blood flow and supporting your endothelial function, which is the lining of the blood vessels,” she says. Additionally, Dr. Timmons notes that living an active lifestyle lowers the risk of obesity, a medical condition that significantly reduces life expectancy.
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Dr. Natalia Sadowski, MD, an internal medicine doctor, geriatrician and photobiomodulation advisor to Recharge Health, tells Parade that exercise improves health deep down at the cellular level, improving mitochondrial efficiency, which helps maintain the body’s ability to produce cellular energy as we age.
“In simple terms, movement tells the body to stay adaptable and resilient. Decades of population research consistently show that people who remain moderately active throughout life experience lower rates of cardiovascular disease, metabolic illness and cognitive decline,” she explains.
Dr. Timmons adds to this, saying that on a cellular level, being active protects DNA by keeping the telomeres in cells lengthened. “These naturally get shorter as you age, and walking and staying active increases telomerase activity, the enzyme that helps your telomeres stay strong,” she says.
As if these benefits weren’t enough to motivate you to be more active, Dr. Mussallem adds that exercise majorly benefits brain health too. “A landmark 2025 analysis of more than 4,300 adults followed for up to 37 years found that people with the highest physical activity levels in midlife and late life had a 45% lower risk of developing all-cause dementia—including Alzheimer’s disease—compared to the least active. Critically, this protective effect held even for carriers of the APOE ε4 allele—the strongest known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s. Exercise is one of the most powerful interventions we have for preserving cognitive function as we age,” she says.
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How Much Exercise Is Needed To Actually Increase Longevity?
It’s clear that living an active lifestyle is intricately linked to longevity. But how much exercise should you aim to get regularly for it to have a noticeable impact on your lifespan? All three doctors say that any amount of exercise is beneficial, and the more active you are, the more your health will benefit.
“Benefits begin at approximately 2,600 to 2,800 steps per day, which is roughly 20 to 25 minutes of walking. That’s where mortality risk starts to bend,” Dr. Mussallem says, citing a 2023 scientific study published in Cureus. Both Dr. Mussallem and Dr. Timmons explain that the benefits of exercising make an even more substantial impact on longevity when increased to getting at least 7,000 steps a day.
That said, Dr. Mussallem recommends aiming for getting at least 8,800 to 10,000 steps a day to really impact your longevity. “[This] represents roughly a 36% absolute risk reduction compared to the least active individuals. That’s about 60 to 75 minutes of walking—but not necessarily all at once,” she shares.
Dr. Sadowski emphasizes that physical activity doesn’t have to be super intense to add years to your life. She says regular walking can be a powerful form of moderate exercise because it activates large muscle groups, improves circulation and supports metabolic health without placing excessive stress on the body.
“From a longevity perspective, consistency matters far more than intensity. Walking is also highly sustainable. It is something most people can continue for decades, and that long-term consistency is exactly what protects health over time,” she notes.
If you want to live a more active lifestyle, Dr. Sadowski recommends weaving movement into routines that already exist. This can look like walking after meals, while talking on the phone, parking farther away and choosing the stairs instead of the elevator.
Dr. Timmons also recommends walking after meals as a way to integrate more movement into your routine. “Walking after a meal is especially beneficial because, in addition to the general health benefits, it helps lower your blood sugar and manage your glucose from food,” she says.
Dr. Timmons is also a fan of “exercise snacks,” which are small bursts of movement throughout the day. “For example, every time you go to the bathroom, you could do 10 squats, or you could set an alarm and do 10 squats every hour when you get up from your desk,” she says.
If you don’t typically enjoy exercise, using it as a form of social connection could change the way you think about it, such as going on neighborhood walks with a friend or taking a group fitness class at your local gym. Dr. Mussallem says that group-based programs with goal setting, progress monitoring and social support are among the most effective for long-term behavior change.
“It’s important to find something you love to do that involves movement,” Dr. Timmons says. “That could be a sport or any activity that feels enjoyable, rather than just going to the gym and grinding through a workout. It’s even better if it’s social, like tennis, where you can combine movement with connection.”
When you start integrating more movement into your routine, you’ll likely find yourself wanting to live healthier in other ways too, such as eating nutrient-rich meals that provide you with the energy you need to sustain your physical activity levels. This positive domino effect is what will have the biggest impact on your longevity. The more you support your health, the more it will support you!
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Sources
Leading causes of death. Centers for Disease Control and PreventionDr. Dawn Mussallem, DO, lifestyle medicine doctor, Mayo Clinic consultant and chief medical officer at Fountain LifeSaint-Maurice, P. F., Coughlan, D., Kelly, S. P., et al. (2019). Association of Leisure-Time Physical Activity Across the Adult Life Course With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality. JAMA Network Open. 2(3):e190355 Dr. Jennifer Timmons, MD, longevity physician and founder of Timmons WellnessDjalalinia, S., Qorbani, M., Peykari, N., et al. (2015). Health impacts of Obesity. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences. 31(1):239-242 Dr. Natalia Sadowski, MD, internal medicine doctor, geriatrician and photobiomodulation advisor to Recharge HealthMarino, F. R., Lyu, C., Li, Y., et al. (2025). Physical Activity Over the Adult Life Course and Risk of Dementia in the Framingham Heart Study.JAMA Network Open. 8(11):e2544439Arya, A. K., Garg, A., Pal, S., et al. (2023). Evaluation of Rapid Antigen Test as a Marker of SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity.Cureus. 15(3):e36962Hence then, the article about we asked 3 doctors what habit matters most for longevity they all said the same thing was published today ( ) and is available on Parade ( Saudi Arabia ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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