Physical activity guidelines for seniors emphasize at least two days of strength training and two and a half hours of moderate to vigorous aerobic physical activity each week. But many people underestimate the importance of muscle strengthening by relying on the benefits of heart pumping through aerobic exercise, according to the American news network “CNN”, citing the “JAMA Network Open” magazine.
Over 65 years old
A new study finds that, aside from aerobic physical activity, according to researcher Dr. Bryant Weber, a scientist, adults over 65 who did strength training two to six times a week lived longer than those who did. they did it less than twice. of nutrition, physical activity and obesity at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
All types of physical activity
“We found that each type of physical activity was independently associated with a lower risk of death from all causes in the elderly,” Weber said in an email.
He added: “Those who met the guidelines for strengthening muscles only (compared to both guidelines for strength and aerobic training) had a 10% lower risk of death and those who met the guidelines for aerobic exercise alone had a 24% lower risk of death., while the risks were lower. 30% for those who did both aerobic exercise and muscle strengthening, “noting that the results applied to all age groups, including to the elderly.
Age over 85 years
The study found that people aged 85 and over who met guidelines for aerobic exercise and muscle strengthening had a 28% lower risk of death from any cause among people over 85 years of age. , compared to those who did not adhere to any of the guidelines.
“This finding suggests that aerobic physical activity and muscle strengthening are important throughout life,” Weber said, explaining that the study looked at leisure and other physical activities, which were collected by the National Health Interview Survey. an ongoing health procedure conducted by the CDC. Information on strength training and aerobic activity by age group was then compared with mortality over an average of eight years.
2 to 6 times a week
The researchers found that adults who performed two to three, four and six sessions of muscle-strengthening exercises per week were less likely to die from any cause than adults who did strength training less than twice a week. Doing more was not helpful, as the study found that 7 to 28 strength training sessions per week did not provide additional protection.
Transporting canned foods
The CDC said that you don’t need to go to the gym to build muscle, as you can lift weights at home, work out with resistance bands, or use your bodyweight for resistance (e.g. pushups and sit-ups) or digging or shoveling activities in the park. Even “canned lifting” can be considered a muscle-strengthening activity, Webber said, as the goal is to train all the major muscle groups in the body: abdomen, arms, back, chest, hips, legs and shoulders. .
300 minutes of aerobic exercise
Looking at the aerobic exercise data alone, the study found that exercising 10 to 300 minutes per week was associated with a lower risk of death from any cause than exercising less than 10 minutes per week.
Aerobic activities can include walking, cycling, hiking, shoveling leaves, pushing a lawn mower, and exercising in the water, just to name a few.
