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For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

washingtonpost.com

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Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#21

Post by Maciek_Kl »

sonthonax wrote: post #14

I’ve always thought there’s something misguided about the legions of “want to get fit” types who self flagellate with long runs. Running is terrible exercise. Terrible because it’s extremely hard on the body unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale. If you do any sport with a high mobility requirement, you can feel how tight a single run makes you. The killer in old age is immobility, of your knees and hips. R…

What you write about running isn't true. I recommend reading the book- The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing by Phil Maffetone

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#22

Post by inciampati »

johnrob wrote: post #18
sonthonax wrote: post #14

I’ve always thought there’s something misguided about the legions of “want to get fit” types who self flagellate with long runs. Running is terrible exercise. Terrible because it’s extremely hard on the body unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale. If you do any sport with a high mobility requirement, you can feel how tight a single run makes you. The killer in old age is immobility, of your knees and hips. R…

This is not a scientific argument, but if you build up conditioning safely, i think running should be excellent for you - especially if sprinting is involved. My take is that it’s a natural movement that evolution has prepared you for. Just my 2 cents.

Agreed. Natural movements of all types are critical. Just running long slow distances on hard surfaces can be rough on the body. Running is addictive and costless aside from your time. That's maybe why the legions (myself included) use it as their primary exercise.

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#24

Post by ren_engineer »

johnrob wrote: post #18
sonthonax wrote: post #14

I’ve always thought there’s something misguided about the legions of “want to get fit” types who self flagellate with long runs. Running is terrible exercise. Terrible because it’s extremely hard on the body unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale. If you do any sport with a high mobility requirement, you can feel how tight a single run makes you. The killer in old age is immobility, of your knees and hips. R…

This is not a scientific argument, but if you build up conditioning safely, i think running should be excellent for you - especially if sprinting is involved. My take is that it’s a natural movement that evolution has prepared you for. Just my 2 cents.

>This is not a scientific argument, but if you build up conditioning safely, i think running should be excellent for you

the problem is that running/jogging is usually the first thing people turn to for "getting in shape" and these people are often significantly overweight. Starting off with a high impact exercise is a recipe for disaster. Put on a 50-100lb weight vest and try running around and feel the impact on your joints and back, not ideal

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#26

Post by cal85 »

sonthonax wrote: post #14

I’ve always thought there’s something misguided about the legions of “want to get fit” types who self flagellate with long runs. Running is terrible exercise. Terrible because it’s extremely hard on the body unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale. If you do any sport with a high mobility requirement, you can feel how tight a single run makes you. The killer in old age is immobility, of your knees and hips. R…

> unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale

Can you clarify, do you mean lower than 'normal' range (i.e. < 18.5), or lower than the US average (i.e. < 26), or what? And is this mostly anecdotal or is there evidence to support it (the view that running is a bad exercise for people above a certain BMI)? Not challenging this, I just haven't heard it before and am intrigued. And can you clarify what you mean by "any sport with a high mobility requirement?

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#27

Post by avgcorrection »

rocket_surgeron wrote: post #11

I'm not a human bodyologist. I'm a barely functional human being who feels as though he is faking his way though being an adult. What I can say is that two years ago in my early 40s I had a L5-S1 spinal fusion after decades of pain, tremendous weight gain, and crippling depression. My surgeon really only said two things after I woke up from the surgery. He loomed over me in what my post-anesthetic stupor remembers as…

Sounds like a well-balanced routine. Good luck onwards. :)

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#28

Post by SoftTalker »

Temporary_31337 wrote: post #5
HNDen21 wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exercising strengthens the bones in addition to building muscle. DEXA scans will show this... when a person starts squatting for example, bone density goes up as well

it's not just bones - it's also the tendons, ligaments, heck even the skin

All true but it's not without risk.

I'm in my 50s, lifting weights for about 3 years now, slow steady increases in weight and am much stronger than I was in 2019. Recently while bench pressing I felt something "pop" in my shoulder and now can't do any pressing movement at all without significant pain. Diagnosed and tried to rehab it as a tendon strain with no improvement. Getting an MRI soon to see what's going on.

At my age I don't really feel "old" mentally or physically, so hitting my body's physical limits in the gym is both difficult to accept and discouraging, as I had been making decent progress up until then. I can still squat and deadlift and do many other accessories but I am paying much more attention to what my joints and ligaments are telling me.

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#29

Post by vishnugupta »

altdataseller wrote: post #19
sonthonax wrote: post #14

I’ve always thought there’s something misguided about the legions of “want to get fit” types who self flagellate with long runs. Running is terrible exercise. Terrible because it’s extremely hard on the body unless you’re on the lower end of the BMI scale. If you do any sport with a high mobility requirement, you can feel how tight a single run makes you. The killer in old age is immobility, of your knees and hips. R…

Is that the case for cycling too?

Anecdotal. While I was in Netherlands I was quite pleasantly surprised to see so many old people, judging by their looks 70+, cycling to their daily chores. They seemed quite fit and mobile just fine to me. After a while I stopped being surprised because I realised it's a common occurrence there. So make of this what you will.

Re: For longevity, muscle strength may be as important as aerobic exercise

#30

Post by SoftTalker »

ren_engineer wrote: post #24
johnrob wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is not a scientific argument, but if you build up conditioning safely, i think running should be excellent for you - especially if sprinting is involved. My take is that it’s a natural movement that evolution has prepared you for. Just my 2 cents.

>This is not a scientific argument, but if you build up conditioning safely, i think running should be excellent for you the problem is that running/jogging is usually the first thing people turn to for "getting in shape" and these people are often significantly overweight. Starting off with a high impact exercise is a recipe for disaster. Put on a 50-100lb weight vest and try running around and feel the impact on yo…

If you are 50lbs "overweight" your body has built the strength to carry that weight. Look at any champion powerlifter or "strongman" champion, they all look overweight. It's not all fat, it's the muscle to move that weight around as well. So it's not really the same as a normal-weight person putting on a weight vest.

But long term overweight is hard on your joints, no disupting that.

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