Category Archives: Exercise

Click the link below and you’ll find that young adults in the United States are sedentary for 6-8 hours a day, while adults 60 or older spend 9 hours a day sedentary.

From MedicalNewsToday:

“Sedentary behavior can raise the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and other conditions, even among people who are physically active. This is according to a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association.

Sitting too much is detrimental to health, regardless of physical activity levels, say researchers.In recent years, there has been an increasing number of studies documenting the harms of sedentary behavior – defined as any waking activity that involves sitting or lying down, such as watching TV or working on the computer.

Research has repeatedly linked sedentary behavior with increased risk of obesity, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and more.A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine earlier this year estimated that prolonged sitting is responsible for 430,000 all-cause deaths over 54 countries, and a more recent study claimed that sedentary behavior is a leading risk factor for mortality, second only to smoking.”

Source: Prolonged sitting: ‘Exercise does not offset health risks,’ say AHA – Medical News Today

Physical activity improved brain function in schizophrenics:

“The researchers note that a number of previous studies have hailed exercise for its neurocognitive benefits, but that to date, there has not been a comprehensive analysis of how physical activity might affect the cognitive functioning of people with schizophrenia.

With this in mind, the team conducted a meta-analysis of 10 controlled trials involving a total of 385 individuals with schizophrenia. All trials looked at how exercise – predominantly aerobic exercise – affected patients’ cognitive functioning.

The analysis revealed that schizophrenia patients who completed around 12 weeks of aerobic exercise – alongside their usual schizophrenia treatment – had better cognitive functioning than those who did not engage in aerobic exercise.In detail, the team found aerobic exercise significantly improved the attention, social cognition – the ability to understand social situations – and working memory of individuals with schizophrenia.”

Source: Schizophrenia symptoms eased with aerobic exercise – Medical News Today

“An important new science article has been making the rounds, with apparently every newspaper and internet news aggregator in the world repeating the message: You don’t have to lift heavy weights to get stronger.I know you read it. Here’s the first place I saw it, and here’s the actual paper.

It’s important because it both seems to confirm what everybody wants to believe, and because it’s actually a pretty good technical study. But it is wrong, because it studies the wrong questions. Nonetheless, you now think that you don’t have to lift heavier weights to get stronger.”

Source: Once Again, Terrible Exercise Science Gets Praised by Mainstream Media | PJ Media

Not P.D. Mangan

A hallmark of aerobic exercise is a fast heart rate and heavy rapid breathing during the activity. “Aerobic exercise” is things like jogging, treadmill work, stair-stepping, rowing, soccer, serious bicycling, etc.

I’ve never checked my breathing rate during a weight-training workout, but I do occasionally check a heart rate right after a set: 140-150 is common.

P.D. Mangan writes at his blog:

“Of all the misconceptions about strength training and weight lifting, one that comes up a lot is that they have no aerobic component. Therefore, the idea goes, if you do only weight training, you won’t build sufficient cardiorespiratory fitness, which you need to protect your heart and get the benefits of exercise. But weight lifting increases aerobic fitness, all on its own.

On at least two occasions, when a doctor has asked me what i do for exercise — after remarking that I was in great shape — and I told them weight lifting, they said I needed to add some aerobic exercise (cardio).

It’s obvious that these doctors never lifted weights. At my weight lifting sessions, I have to catch my breath after a set and my heart is often going at around 160 to 180 beats per minute.

It’s not just a couple doctors either. The view is widespread that you must do a very special form of exercise, called aerobics or cardio, to improve heart and lung function and raise VO2max, the most common measure of cardiorespiratory fitness.

On the contrary, weight lifting raises VO2max.”

Source: The Big Misconception About Weight Lifting – Rogue Health and Fitness

Steve Parker, M.D.

PS: Check out Mangan’s wonderful books.

PPS: Do you ever wonder what’s your theoretical maximum heart rate? The common heuristic is to subtract your age from 220, and that’s your answer. The formula doesn’t work if you take certain drugs, like beta blockers, the limit your heart rate.

PPPS: If you dislike uncommon words like “heuristic,” you won’t find them in my books.