You could be building serious strength in the time it takes to unload the dishwasher.

A new study from Penn State College of Medicine found that engaging in as little as four minutes of four key exercises may be enough to support overall physical function in aging folk.

“The human body is designed to improve very quickly,” said lead author Christopher Sciamanna. “And just a few repetitions of an exercise performed regularly can lead to huge improvements. Exercise is about forward thinking — think about what you want to be able to do and train for it.”

Published in PLOS One, the study examined the effects of a minimal strength-training regimen on adults aged 65 and older — and found marked improvement in as little as 12 weeks.

Previous research has established that strength training can help people remain independent, recover from illness or injury, travel more easily and stay active later in life.

But less than 20% of older adults meet the recommended two days per week of muscle-strengthening activity.

Experts suspect one barrier to committing to a strength-training routine is the belief that a serious time commitment is required to reap the benefits.

Yet Sciamanna and his team found that those benefits can be reaped in a shockingly short time.

“There are huge problems with people wanting to do exercise. If we can make it short, we’re partway there,” co-author Smita Dandekar assured.

Building on earlier research that found shorter routines just as effective as longer sets, the team tested a program called FAST (Functional Activity Strength Training)-2, which included four key exercises: push-ups, chair stands, two-arm rows and stair stepping.

About 100 participants, with an average age of 74, were assigned this exercise regimen or no regimen at all.

Those doing the exercise were given resistance bands and an adjustable stepper and instructed to perform each exercise for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of rest.

Modifications, such as performing pushups with hands on a countertop or wall, or chair stands with hands on the knees, were allowed.

As the study continued and participants improved, they were asked to try more advanced versions of the exercises, dropping modifications when possible and increasing step height.

To measure progress, participants’ ability to stand up and stand on one leg was assessed at the beginning, middle, and end of the study.

“These indicators predict your future ability to go into a nursing home, your future likelihood of falling, and of developing difficulty walking,” Sciamanna said. “They give you a sense of whether or not you’re going to be able to be active in the future.”

Several studies have linked balance and stability to overall health.

A 2022 study dubbed the “flamingo challenge” found that middle-aged people who cannot balance on one foot for 10 seconds face a dramatically higher risk of early death.

In this latest study, researchers found that participants who followed the exercise regimen showed significant improvements in functional performance over three months. On average, the exercise cohort could do 4.2 more repetitions in a 30-second chair stand, 3.6 more seconds in one-legged stand time, and shaved 2.3 seconds off their sit-to-stand time.

“These changes point to related improvements in daily life fitness, such as standing up from a chair, climbing stairs, and walking,” said Sciamanna.

Results show that the brevity of the exercise program increased the likelihood that participants would commit to it, with participants completing the routine on 81% of days.

According to Sciamanna, this completion rate proves that the program can easily fit into stacked schedules and time constraints, factors that have historically discouraged aging adults from starting and maintaining a fitness practice.

“The findings are a promising indication that resistance training regimens do not have to be long to make a big difference in strength, mobility, and quality of life,” said Sciamanna.