How Helpful Is Exercise? Part 2
October 1, 2008
If exercise is perhaps not as good at stopping diseases like heart disease as first thought, should you bother much with exercise? Is exercise helpful in any major way?
One benefit of exercise is for aging. As we age physical activity becomes more important.
Have you heard of sarcopenia?
Sarcopenia is the loss muscle mass, strength and function that occurs with aging.
Generally the time of peak muscle mass in the mid 20’s. After this time there are changes in muscle. These changes are slow until about the mid 40’s when they increase, and there is a further increase at around 65 to 70 years.
The changes in muscle include loss of muscle fibers and changes that make muscle contract more slowly; there is a loss of strength and also the ability to move the muscles as precisely.
Sarcopenia leads to less strength, slower reaction times, increased risk of injury, reduced ability to do fine movements, an increased risk of injury and falls.
Sarcopenia is a natural aging process so for everybody there is going to be some loss of function. However, an exercise program can have significant effects on sarcopenia.
The less physical activity, the faster the progression of sarcopenia.
Though all exercise is beneficial, progressive resistance training is the most important for slowing and even reversing some of the functional effects of sarcopenia.
Progressive resistance training is the use of some form of resistance (weights, rubber tubing, own body weight, etc.) when contracting muscles. The aim is to have sufficient resistance, so that somewhere between 8 and 15 repetitions the movement will become hard to do. As muscles get stronger the amount of resistance is increased.
So the answer to the question, how helpful is exercise? The answer is – it might not prevent some diseases but it is essential for slowing the effects of aging on muscle. It is important for keeping us mobile, injury free and able to have the lifestyle that we want.
For How helpful is exercise? Part 1
photo credit: happysnappr
Technorati Tags: muscle, sarcopenia, muscle loss, progressive resistance training
Older Dieters Lose Muscle If Not Exercising
September 22, 2008
When dieting the loss of muscle as well as fat certainly occurs in all age groups, but as we age muscle loss will have more and more of a negative impact. Why?
After about 25 years of age, we all start to lose muscle mass, strength and get reduced muscle function. Then from about age 40 there is a more rapid loss. This loss of muscle mass and strength is known as sarcopenia.
The loss of muscle strength and function due to sarcopenia, leads to decreased ability to lift things, less injury, finding it harder to balance and more likely to fall. Generally life gets a bit more difficult.
Sarcopenia is a natural part of the aging process. However, the rate at which it occurs and the impact sarcopenia has on the quality of life can be moderated by exercising.
A new study looked at weight loss in an older study population. The main finding was that those who did not combine exercising with eating less, lost muscle as well as fat.
The loss of muscle due to dieting in an individual who already has a significant level of sarcopenia can have major consequences. If you already don’t have a lot of muscle, loss of more muscle is going to have a very negative impact on life.
The study showed that those who exercised lost fat rather than muscle. Additionally, by the end of the study, those that exercised had the benefit of better muscle function too.
So as we age exercise has even more benefit, not only for cardiovascular health, but also for weight loss and general quality of life. Slow down sarcopenia!
Technorati Tags: older dieters, lose muscle, exercising, muscle strength, muscle function, sarcopenia
Need To Exercise? Take A Pill?
August 4, 2008
The pill that mimics exercise seems to have been all over the media in the last few days. Sounds too good to be true. How to get trim and buff with an exercise pill or two.
Guess there are 2 types of pills, one where you need to exercise and one that you don’t. I looked at the website of the journal where the research is being published but it was not up yet (the press gets the info ahead of the public). So I am relying mainly on the NYT for the basic info.
One drug (GW1516) makes mice that are exercising have a rapid increase in endurance. The mice on the drug for 4 weeks had 77% more endurance than mice that were not taking the drug.
Treatment with the second drug (AICAR) increased the endurance of mice that were not exercising by 44%. So even with no exercise there was an improvement in muscle structure.
Theoretically, you could take the second drug and sit at home and get more endurance as if you were exercising. It is unknown whether actually doing the exercise has all the major benefits that the pills would not have. Plus one of the drugs need exercise to be effective.
Of course if these drugs are found to consistently build muscle, and not have any serious short or long term side effects, would be very useful for degenerative diseases, after injury and in aging.
In aging it could help build up muscle in those who are frail. A strong musculature not only makes it easier opening jars, picking up groceries, and other things, but also lessens the number of falls and helps protect against injury when a fall occurs.
Even if these drugs can only be used for a short time, the hardest part of any exercise program is the first part, when very out of shape and weak. These exercise pills may provide a good way to get started and see quick results.
photo credit: Brooks Elliott
Technorati Tags: pill, exercise, aicar, endurance, aging
Weight Training Revs Up The Body Metabolism
February 9, 2008
When weight training there is an increase in the proportion of type II fibers. A recent study showed that when there was a boost in the numbers of type II fibers in mice, that they had higher metabolic rate. The interesting thing about the finding is that the metabolic rate was not just increased in the muscles used in the weight training, but in other tissues in the body. The metabolism of fat cells and the liver was revved up too, and insulin resistance was improved in obese mice that had become diabetic.
This finding suggests that weight training will be of great benefit for anyone trying to lose weight. One of the problems for people on a diet is that the metabolism slows down, and remains at a lower level for quite a long time even after the goal weight has been achieved. It is likely with a restricted food intake that the body goes into starvation/survival mode and lowers the metabolic rate to conserve energy. Adding regular weight training sessions may well be the way to boost the metabolism at least back to the pre-diet level, if not higher. Therefore, weight training should both help with weight loss, and then maintaining the weight loss.
So yesterday, I decided to start weight (resistance) training. Today my triceps and abs, in particular, are sore. It was pretty pathetic how little weight I could lift and how few reps of the abs exercises I managed to do. I wonder if I will be inspired to keep it up this time. The book I used for the exercises (from a previous burst of enthusiasm) was Strength Training for Women by Joan Pagano.
For more information about the study, Weight Training Reduces Fat and Improves Metabolism in Mice, see Science Daily.
Technorati Tags: muscle fiber, weight training, metabolism
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