Association between “weekend warrior” physical activity pattern and frailty in older adults

Physical activity (PA) is an effective strategy to delay frailty; however, whether concentrated versus evenly distributed PA patterns differentially influence frailty risk remains unclear. This study examined the association between PA patterns and frailty risk. A total of 6746 participants aged ≥ 60 years were included from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Based on self-reported moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), participants were categorized into four groups: inactive (no MVPA), insufficiently active (MVPA < 150 min/week), weekend warrior (MVPA ≥ 150 min/week in 1–2 sessions), and regularly active (MVPA ≥ 150 min/week in ≥ 3 sessions). Further analyses were conducted according to PA frequency, duration, and intensity. After adjustment for confounders, both weekend warriors (OR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.46–0.80) and regularly active individuals (OR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.48–0.64) showed significantly lower frailty risk than inactive participants, whereas insufficient activity was not associated with frailty ( P = 0.132). Frailty risk did not differ between weekend warriors and regularly active individuals, and PA frequency, duration, and intensity were not independently associated with frailty. Subgroup analyses showed a stronger protective effect of the weekend warrior pattern among urban residents. This study suggests that older adults can achieve comparable reductions in frailty risk whether their PA is accumulated over one to two days or distributed across multiple days. These findings highlight that the weekend warrior pattern may serve as a feasible alternative strategy for frailty prevention, especially for individuals unable to maintain daily exercise routines.