A recent study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine analyzed the relationship between resistance training and the risk of death. The study followed over 147,000 U.S. adults who participated in three large health studies spanning up to 30 years. Participants reported their exercise habits, including the number of minutes per week spent on resistance training and aerobic activity.
Findings
The study found that doing a moderate amount of resistance training was linked with a lower risk of death. The clearest benefit was seen at around 90 to 119 minutes per week of resistance training. People who stuck to this interval of training per week had a 13% lower risk of all-cause death, 19% lower risk of death from heart disease, and 27% lower risk of death from neurological disease.
A lower risk of cancer death was seen at even small amounts of resistance training — 30 to 59 minutes per week was associated with a 12% decreased risk. The lowest overall death risk was found in people who did both higher aerobic activity and moderate to high resistance training.
While the study shows only an association between resistance training and lower death risk, not a direct cause, the findings suggest that incorporating resistance training into one’s exercise routine can have significant health benefits.
Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
