Study finds new longevity movement? May reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer

When it comes to exercise, you can think of health preservation. But Xiao Jiu wants to say that many people only know one thing, but not the other.

Aerobic exercises such as walking and jogging are widely known to the general public . In fact, there is another type of exercise that is also very suitable for the elderly.

Let's talk about today's protagonist: the resistance movement.

1. Research discovers new longevity movement?

A recent study published in the "British Journal of Sports Medicine" shows that doing resistance exercise can make people live healthier, and the incidence of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes is lower.

The researchers conducted a risk analysis on 16 studies. The age of these studies ranged from 18 to 97.8 years, the number of people ranged from 3809 to 479,856, and the longest follow-up time reached 25.2 years.

After removing age, body mass index, smoking and drinking status, eating habits, various types of exercise and other influencing factors, it was found that compared with those who did not do resistance exercise every week, the all-cause mortality rate of participants who did weekly resistance exercise was reduced by 15%. It was associated with a 17% lower risk of vascular disease, a 12% lower risk of cancer, and a 17% lower risk of diabetes .

And doing resistance exercise is not as long as possible, the study found:

40 minutes of resistance exercise per week had the greatest reduction in all-cause mortality

30 minutes is the most beneficial for cancer risk reduction

60 minutes to minimize cardiovascular and diabetes risk

· But if more than 3 hours per week will increase the risk of death by 10%.

In addition, it should be noted that this does not mean that only resistance exercise is enough for a week. Aerobic exercise should also be done, combining resistance and aerobic exercise to promote fitness.

2. Why is resistance exercise friendly to the elderly?

When many people hear words such as fitness and muscle gain, they often think that this is a sport for young people, while the elderly do not need to lose fat and increase muscle.

In fact, the elderly will face the problem of decreasing muscle content in the body as they get older . Studies have found that the peak period of the number of muscle fibers in the body is about 30 years old. After the age of 30, it will decrease at a rate of 1-3% per year. The rate will increase at the age of 60 , and muscle mass, strength and explosive power will also be lost. Therefore, the elderly Muscle strength is also required.

Resistance exercise, also known as strength exercise, is a kind of exercise that the human skeletal muscles actively carry out under the condition of overcoming external resistance, that is, strength and equipment exercises that we often say in our lives, such as sit-ups, push-ups, squats, and lifting dumbbells , Sandbag sports, etc.

Resistance exercise has many advantages and can enhance muscle strength . Adults over the age of 50 choose exercises with fewer repetitions and medium-to-high-intensity loads, which are beneficial to the enhancement of muscle strength. Can improve anabolism, testosterone, insulin-like growth factor and growth hormone levels, can help the body repair damaged muscle fibers. It also helps skeletal muscles to synthesize and secrete myokines . Myokines can circulate in the body through blood, act on the heart, kidneys and other organs, and help regulate the metabolism of the human body.

Recently, the American Cancer Society released the third edition of the "Guidelines on Nutrition and Physical Activity for Cancer Survivors" to guide cancer patients on how to prolong life by changing diet and physical activity. Among them, it is recommended to perform strength training or resistance exercise at least 2 days a week when safe activities are met.

Three, 4 kinds of resistance training, you can practice at home

The following 4 kinds of sports are recommended , which can be done at home. But the training should pay attention to the movement norms, and the training intensity should be within one's ability.

1. Plank

When prone, spread your hands shoulder-width apart, and support your elbow joints on the ground. It is best to keep your upper arms at right angles to your torso. Straighten your neck naturally, keep your chest up and look forward and down, keep your head, shoulders, hips and lower limbs at the same level, tighten your abdominal muscles and pelvic floor muscles, and breathe naturally.

2. Hip bridge

Lie on your back on the ground, bend your knees at 90 degrees, force your heels to hit the ground, contract the muscles at the back of your thighs and buttocks, raise your buttocks as much as possible, keep the movement at the highest point of your buttocks for 3 seconds, and finally slowly return to the original position. You can do 3 sets of 10 reps each time.

Image source network

3. Push-ups

Keep your hands shoulder-width apart, and keep your abs tight. Pay attention to the details of adducting the elbows before performing push-ups. It is recommended to bend the elbows properly when the action reaches the highest point.

4. Squat

Stand tall and keep your legs shoulder-width apart. Keeping your legs parallel keeps your knees and toes in the same direction as you squat. Squat down slowly until the angle between the thighs and thighs is about 70-80 degrees, then stand up straight with your thighs.

4. No conditions? try a brisk walk

If you are in poor health or cannot perform resistance training, you can practice more brisk walking.

Song Yuetao , Director of the Research Office of Geriatric Health and Medical Care Integration of Beijing Geriatric Hospital , pointed out that the speed of walking can predict the length of life, which is reasonable. The heart needs to provide strong support when walking. If you walk faster, your heart and lung function is better.

It is also pointed out that walking briskly and mobilizing most of the body's muscle groups can increase the strength of the muscles and ligaments of the lower limbs, keep the joints flexible, accelerate the blood circulation of the limbs and internal organs, and help improve the body's aerobic capacity.

How long did the speed and steps last? Zhu Xinpu, deputy chief physician of the Neurology Department of Shanghai Fourth People's Hospital, believes that the speed of brisk walking is generally 90-130 steps per minute for men and 80-120 steps per minute for women.

A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2020 found that it is optimal for normal people to walk 8,000-12,000 steps a day . There will be obvious benefits for sedentary people if they increase from 2000 steps to 4000 steps per day. People with chronic diseases can significantly reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease and cancer mortality by walking 8,000 steps a day.

The "Dietary Nutrition Guidelines for Chinese Residents" recommends walking 6,000 steps a day. Of course, the most important thing is to do what you can according to your actual situation.

Life lies in exercise, no matter what age group people are, maintaining appropriate resistance exercise or doing brisk walking can make the body healthier and increase the chance of life extension.

references:

[1] "There are many benefits of resistance training for the elderly". The 12th Ward of the Third Hospital of the City. 2019-11-22

[2] "Walking speed can predict the length of life? Follow this and live longer...》. Popular Science China. 2022-02-24

[3] "Go! A study of 470,000 people found that if you insist on brisk walking every day, you will live an average of 15 years longer! ". Health Times. 2021-11-15

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