Scientific Proof that Exercise Keeps Your Body Young

Regular exercise has been proved to actually delay aging throughout your body
Image by Flickr / Melissa Maples
Regular exercise has been proved to actually delay aging throughout your body

We've often been told the benefits of exercise are enormous

Case in point: I recently saw the MRI thigh scans below on Alex Hutchinson's Sweat Science blog.

triathlete thigh scansPretty remarkable is all I can say.

The pictures speak for themselves. Use your muscles or you'll lose them. The actual study is free if you want to read it.

Preserving Muscle Mass

But a word of caution. You'll only preserve muscles that you actually use. For example, if you simply run and never do any exercise for your arms, you'll still lose muscle mass in them as this study showed.

So make sure you exercise your entire body. If you only run or bike, add some upper body exercises to your program. Or do some swimming.

Exercise Keeps You Young, Literally

To add even more evidence, if you need it, another study concluded that 80-year-old people who've participated in lifelong aerobic or strength training were comparable to those aged 50 to 55 years old.

The same study stated that, "Exercise has vast beneficial effects on a multitude of organs and body systems and delays aging-associated losses in:
    •    cognitive function,
    •    osteoporosis,
    •    insulin resistance,
    •    atherosclerosis,
    •    certain site-specific cancers,
    •    depression and
    •    immunity."

And the researchers also noted that there will never be a single drug that can counter the decline in all organ systems the way exercise can.

Wow!

Now stop reading and get some exercise!

About the Author : Curb Ivanic

Curb Ivanic is a strength and conditioning coach who will occasionally indulge in good chocolate or a tasty pilsner. If you're fit enough, you can catch him running, boarding, paddling or hanging out with his family in Vancouver. Web | Twitter

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Comments

3
    • Anonymous
    • February 21, 2012 @ 9:27

    why does it always come down to selling something we don*t all need or can do , can you not just stick with the truth, we all know we should do more but time and work do not permit and adding this or that only adds more stress to our lives.


    • Anonymous
    • April 6, 2012 @ 1:57

    If you really want something, you MAKE time for it. You're just trying to make excuses. Exercise is not that difficult. I've lost 95lbs and if I can do it, ANYONE can.


    • Anonymous
    • January 27, 2012 @ 10:14

    test


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