Most fitness plans ask for an hour, a gym membership and a new pair of sneakers. Helen Mirren’s asks for 12 minutes and a bit of floor. At 81, the Oscar winner still relies on a routine designed in the 1950s for the Royal Canadian Air Force, one she has followed for decades and admits she has never fully mastered. It sounds almost too modest to work. Research on short bursts of exercise suggests otherwise.
The 12-minute routine she has never outgrown
Helen Mirren has never been one for elaborate wellness rituals. When she talks about how she stays strong, she keeps coming back to the same thing: a small booklet called XBX. The program was created by Dr. Bill Orban for women in the Royal Canadian Air Force in the 1950s, as a companion to the men’s version known as 5BX. The idea was simple: ten exercises, always in the same order, completed in 12 minutes, with no equipment needed.
Speaking to Woman’s Weekly, as reported by Woman & Home, Mirren described it this way: “It’s an exercise regime that starts from very low and easy, then if you follow it through, it can become quite difficult.” And with a candor that makes the whole thing even more appealing, she added: “I’ve never gotten past the second level, but it’s a nice exercise program.” According to the same report, the routine is the reason she has never felt the need to join a gym.
What the routine actually involves
XBX is organized into four charts of increasing difficulty. The time stays the same, 12 minutes, but the number of repetitions goes up as you progress. The first chart includes these ten moves:
- Toe touches
- Knee raises
- Lateral raises
- Arm circles
- Partial sit-ups
- Chest and leg raises
- Side leg raises
- Knee push-ups
- Leg lifts
- Running on the spot with small hops
The second chart, where Mirren says she still finishes her sessions, swaps in harder versions such as rocking sit-ups, leg overs and stride jumps. All you need is a mat. The idea is to only move up a level once the current one feels comfortable, which is exactly what makes the program sustainable for decades rather than weeks.
Why 12 minutes may be more powerful than it sounds
For years, the message was that exercise only “counts” in long sessions. Recent research has been chipping away at that idea. In a study published in Nature Medicine in December 2022, researchers led by Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis of the University of Sydney analyzed wrist-tracker data from more than 25,000 adults in the UK Biobank who described themselves as non-exercisers, and followed them for about seven years.
The finding, summarized by McMaster University, which co-led the work: three to four short bursts of vigorous activity a day, about one minute each, were associated with up to a 40% lower risk of death from any cause and from cancer, and up to a 49% lower risk of cardiovascular death. “A few very short bouts totalling three to four minutes a day could go a long way,” Stamatakis said. The study was observational, so it cannot prove cause and effect, but it fits a broader shift in thinking: consistency matters more than duration.
Mirren’s routine also ticks a box many people over 65 miss. The CDC recommends that older adults do muscle-strengthening activities at least two days a week, along with activities that improve balance. Push-ups, sit-ups and leg raises cover the first; side leg raises and small hops work on the second.
How to try it at home
If you want to borrow Mirren’s approach, start with the first chart, keep the same time slot every day and resist the temptation to rush to the harder levels. A yoga mat is enough, and a few light dumbbells can come later if you want to progress. Anyone with joint pain, heart problems or a recent injury should check with their doctor first. On busier days, you can pair it with a daily walk, the habit Jane Fonda swears by at 88, or with a few wall Pilates exercises that are gentle on the neck.
The real secret is not the exercises
What makes Mirren’s routine remarkable is not its intensity. It is the fact that she has kept doing it, at the same pace, for decades, without ever needing to master it. In a culture obsessed with the next fitness trend, an 81-year-old actress quietly following a 1950s booklet may be the most convincing argument for keeping it short, simple and regular.
