Fitness briefs: Activity helps you feel young, and long and lean is good for soccer players
Working out delays effects of aging
Many people think of stiff joints and slow movement as just normal parts of aging, but if people keep up healthy, active lifestyles as they age, they can ward off some of those health problems, according to the Mayo Clinic Health Letter. People of any age can start exercising, the report says, though people should always check with their doctors first. The report recommends getting aerobic and strength activities as well as stretching, balance exercises and core stability training, all of which can reduce the risk of falls as people age.
Ankle exercises build strength and balance
Speaking of improving balance, a study from Portugal finds that simple foot and ankle stretches can improve strength and balance in the elderly. The study involved three 15-minute exercise programs a week for some institutionalized seniors. Compared to those who didn’t get the exercise, six weeks later the stretchers saw increased strength in some foot muscles and improved their scores on tests for functional mobility and balance.
Benefits of exercise still seen when you start late
And one more study on the theme of “it’s never too late to start exercising” shows that even when people wait until they’re 50 years old to start exercising they will see benefits, but it may take as long as 10 years for the beneficial effects to really kick in. A Swedish study involving more than 2,000 men over the age of 50 found unsurprisingly that those who were the most active had the lowest risk of death five years into the study, but those who started exercising at 50 caught up to the heavy exercisers 10 years in such that they all had a similar risk of death, according to a report in the British Medical Journal. Sedentary people were the most likely to die during the study.
Working out breathing muscles could help some athletes
Soccer players, hockey players and basketball players run around a lot in their sports and often need short bursts of extra energy as they compete. A small study in 27 soccer players shows that training the respiratory muscles could help athletes better perform short bursts of exercise. Researchers compared people who used a respiratory training device to those who used their regular training methods and found that as a group those who trained were better able to power through active bursts, though it didn’t work for everyone. They say more study is needed to determine if the effect can be seen in more athletes and what the optimum training schedule might be.
Size does matter for soccer players
Finally one more bit of news about soccer players: academics at Wolverhampton University say soccer teams are more likely to win if they have big but lean players, and that teams with small, short players won’t do as well. They note that football players (as they’re known in the UK) have gotten taller and leaner over the past 40 years, causing a slight increase in their body mass index on the whole. And the top six teams in the league had more long and lean players than teams that weren’t as successful. They say tall players are better able to move down the field and defend the ball, and they’re less likely to overheat because they have more surface area than smaller players.
(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)
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