Boost Your Longevity with a Mix of Aerobic and Strength Exercises!
Who said fitness wasn’t a survival game? Recently, a study decoded that the royal road to extending longevity is a balanced blend of not-so-chill moderate, vigorous aerobic exercises, coupled with muscle-strengthening activities. Each of these forms of physical activity has a different trick up their sleeve when it comes to fending off the grim reaper from all-cause deaths, heart diseases, and cancer. So, break out of the workout rut of sticking to merely one or two types of physical activity and opt for a weekly buffet of exercise types. It’s time to break a sweat, folks!
The “Triple Threat” to Longevity Risk
The estudio, headed by lead author Rubén López-Bueno, PhD, carved a niche in fitness research by hitting three birds with one stone. Unlike previous studies that scrutinized the effects of physical activities in isolation, their study steered the wheel towards considering combinations of moderate exercise, vigorous exercise, and muscle-strengthening activities. They leveraged a data set from the U.S National Health Interview Survey encompassing half a million healthy adults. The findings manifest that integrating these three physical activities into your weekly routine independently slashes down mortality risks.
Proof That You Gotta Stay Moving And Grooving!
When it comes to exercise, we’re not talking tea parties, people. Let’s be honest, nobody ever got fit by perching on the exercise bike pedaling at snail speeds while flipping through a glossy magazine. Dive deep into the realm of sweaty tees and straining muscles. The study puts it straight – it’s not only about aerobic exercises, you also need to incorporate muscle-strengthening activities in the mix. And the cherry on the top? High-intensity activity sprinkles better results on your health sundae.
Breaking Down the Findings
When you look at the data, the proof is in the perspiration. Our workout aficionados reported on the varying intensity, duration, and frequency of their physical activities. Using this data, the researchers sifted through different combinations of moderate physical activity (MPA), vigorous activity (VPA), and muscle-strengthening activity (MSA). Let’s cut through the chase with the brass tacks:
- The magic combination to lower all-cause mortality risk: more than zero to 75 minutes of MPA, more than 150 minutes of VPA, and MSA at least twice weekly.
- The CVD Grim Reaper keeper: more than 150 to 225 minutes of MPA, zero to 75 minutes of VPA, and MSA at least twice weekly.
- The cancer cops: more than 300 minutes of MPA, zero to 75 minutes of VPA, and MSA at least twice weekly.
The benefits linked to these ideal combinations remained significant even after adjusting for factors like age, sex, other demographic influencers, body mass index, functional limitations, etc. If you’re scrambling for time to meet these recommendations, fret not. Even other combinations of physical activity necessitating lesser time can also prove valuable!
Beyond the Longevity Study
The next adventure for the researchers is to verify whether their findings are applicable to countries outside the United States. They also plan to pin down activity levels with more precision using accelerometry. Keep in mind that the ideal combination is not set in stone – individual variations based on fitness levels, lifestyle, and personal preferences should be factored in. Adding a spice of flexibility and balance training to this mix can also bring significant benefits as proven in other studies.
Remember, at the end of the day, physical fitness is both the journey and the destination. Just lacing up your shoes and moving can do wonders for your health and wellbeing!
Source Article: https://www.tctmd.com/news/mix-aerobic-and-strength-exercise-best-boosting-survival
