Exercise Snacks: Cardio Breaks

Cardio that actually happens on a desk day. Exercise Snacks drops short, hard bursts into your working hours - no kit, no gym, no shower. Why short bursts work Studies of repeated short, hard bursts, like stair climbs and cycling sprints, have reported better cardio fitness in inactive adults over several weeks. Results vary by protocol and person. In a small trial, inactive young adults who did three short stair-climbing bursts a day, on three days a week, improved their cardio fitness over six weeks*. Stair climbs are one of the Exercise Snacks in the app. These aren't mobility or strength exercises, and it isn't a workout you have to schedule. It's cardio that significantly elevates your heart rate - high in intensity, short in duration, and it fits anywhere. If you miss an Exercise Snack Every reminder app has the same problem: the reminder is easy to dismiss. With Pro, the apps you choose lock when you miss an Exercise Snack, and open again as soon as you've done one. Standard gives you ten minutes' grace and a snooze lifts it; Strict locks the moment it's due. Everything unlocks when your window ends either way. We only ever learn how many apps you picked, never which ones. How it works Set your hours, your days, how many Exercise Snacks a day, and how long each one lasts - from 15 seconds to a minute, or up to 3 minutes with Pro. The app schedules them automatically, spaced through your window. When it's time, you get a notification. Snooze it if you're mid-something. Otherwise you get a cue card with your move and the effort you're aiming for, a countdown, and then you're done and back to work. Pick a move Five are built in - stair climbs, sit to stand, air squats, running on the spot and jumping jacks - and you can add your own. Your next one shows on the home screen, so there's nothing to decide when the reminder lands. On Apple Watch Count in and run an Exercise Snack from your wrist, with daily progress at a glance, so you can leave your phone at your desk. With your permission the watch records your peak heart rate for the effort, and saves each one you complete to Apple Health as a High Intensity Interval Training workout - so it counts towards your Activity rings. Every burst logged The time, the duration, how hard it felt, and your peak heart rate if you were wearing your watch. Your history is recorded either way, and it stays on your phone. Every week sits in the grid on your home screen, and any day opens in detail. Pro adds every day on one calendar, your totals, how hard each move felt and, with a watch, peak heart rate. Pro also adds app blocking and up to 10 Exercise Snacks a day, with no limit on your own activities. Up to 6 Exercise Snacks a day, every week's grid, the whole watch app and all the science stay free. Private by design No account, no server, no analytics, and no networking code of our own - your data stays on your iPhone and Apple Watch. The one thing that reaches the network is Apple's StoreKit, which handles the subscription and carries none of your data. The evidence behind it is in the app, under Settings > About, and at exercisesnacks.fit/science. Exercise Snacks involves vigorous physical activity. If you have a heart condition, are pregnant, or have been inactive for a long time, consult your doctor before starting. Jenkins EM et al. Do stair climbing exercise "snacks" improve cardiorespiratory fitness? Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2019;44(6):681-684. doi:10.1139/apnm-2018-0675 Exercise Snacks Pro is £2.99/month or £24.99/year, each with a 2-week free trial for new subscribers. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase and renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends; manage or cancel it any time in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://exercisesnacks.fit/privacy