Story at a glance
- A new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that the risk of death was 41 to 47 percent lower among individuals who achieved the weekly recommended amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity along with two weekly strength training workouts.
- The final analysis included responses from 99,713 people, with an average age of 71.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends older adults engage in 150 minutes of moderate activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity such as hiking, jogging or running, each week.
People who couple weekly cardiovascular exercise with regular weightlifting could cut their premature death risk from nearly all major causes in half.
A new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that risk of death was 41 to 47 percent lower among individuals who achieved the weekly recommended amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) along with two weekly strength training workouts. The association was strongest among women.
“Our finding that mortality risk appeared to be lowest for those who participated in both types of exercise provides strong support for current recommendations to engage in both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities,” researchers wrote.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends older adults engage in 150 minutes of moderate activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity such as hiking, jogging or running, each week. They advise those with chronic conditions to exercise as their condition permits.
Participants were drawn from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening trial, which began in 1993 and includes more than 154,000 men and women ages 55 to 74 from 10 cancer centers across the U.S.
Researchers asked 104,002 participants in 2006 if they had exercised in the past year, including the duration, frequency and intensity. Moderate intensity is described as an activity that causes a light sweat or an elevated heart rate to moderately high levels. Vigorous activity is defined as “activity strenuous enough to work up a sweat or increase your breathing and heart rate to very high levels.”
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The final analysis included responses from 99,713 people, with an average age of 71. More than 28,000 died over an average of nine-and-a-half years of monitoring.
Working out with weights but without cardio exercises was associated with between 9 and 22 percent lower risk of death. Meanwhile, aerobic MVPA was associated with a 24 to 34 percent lower risk of death from any cause, except cancer. But the lowest was observed in individuals who engaged in both forms of exercise.
“Older adults would probably benefit from adding weightlifting exercises to their physical activity routines,” the researchers concluded.
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