Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

bjsm.bmj.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

201–210 of 556 posts

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#201

Post by noonanibus »

snemvalts wrote: post #170
weatherlite wrote: post #163

It's also absolutely amazing for mental health. It's a shame it isn't considered a first line of treatment for mental health because it's super effective (and free).

Instead, people try to fix it with antidepressants, benzodiazepines or something else. It feels a bit like the US approach to pain management – instead of massages or physical therapy, some opioid pill is cheaper to prescribe.

It's not that hard a leap is it? For some reason it seems oblivious to non-sufferers that the idea of a physical treatment for a mental ailment is a given?

For most folks, that connection doesn't exist. Hell, I work out 3x a week and even I don't notice the obvious side-effects even though I'm certain they exist.

When we're dealing with ordinary people living their daily lives, the idea that something so "non-mental" - in the most literal sense "physical" can have an effect on the mental, is a really tough thing to swallow, understand and hell, even percept when things are going well?

Sorry. But I'm an avid gym-goer and even I have to remind myself of the positive it's doing. We're not all the same.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#202

Post by dailykoder »

nradov wrote: post #39
WheatMillington wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cardio still counts even if you don't measure it and share it with Apple.

Come on now. If it's not on Strava then it didn't happen.

Strava is not enough. You should make a tiktok livestream while exercising. Otherwise it's not a real workout

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#203

Post by TechDebtDevin »

refurb wrote: post #111

Yup, for all the risks that people focus on (microplastics, pesticide residues, etc), they don't do the easiest thing to ensure health - exercise.

Well I think you have that backwards, most people concern themselves with the former because they are the easiest to address. It's very easy to just eat less and buy healthier food. Getting your running shoes on and going for a run when you're out of shape and overweight is extremely hard for most people in that category.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#204

Post by TillE »

snemvalts wrote: post #170
weatherlite wrote: post #163

It's also absolutely amazing for mental health. It's a shame it isn't considered a first line of treatment for mental health because it's super effective (and free).

Instead, people try to fix it with antidepressants, benzodiazepines or something else. It feels a bit like the US approach to pain management – instead of massages or physical therapy, some opioid pill is cheaper to prescribe.

Exercise (and sunlight!) are proven treatments for mild to moderate depression. It's probably not all you need, but it's a very good start.

Exercise does nothing for severe depression.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#205

Post by prerok »

cycomanic wrote: post #168

Weird that people seem to assert that causality is not established? There are hundreds to thousands of studies that show that pretty much all markers for mortality and morbidity go down with excercise, i.e. put someone regulalrly on a treadmill for a couple of month and pretty much all health markers improve. People implying that the study shows only correlation really don't seem to understand how we establish causal…

Well, I don't doubt that cardio fitness decreases the chance for morbidity and mortality, but in this study they only established correlation.

I think that in science we have to be extra careful just what we are saying. And saying that this study proves causality would be wrong. I am sure there are other studies that could (do?) prove it but this statistical analysis can only prove correlation.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#206

Post by makeitdouble »

weatherlite wrote: post #163

It's also absolutely amazing for mental health. It's a shame it isn't considered a first line of treatment for mental health because it's super effective (and free).

I think it's partly because as it also works as prevention of those same mental illnesses, many patients will have a higher than average barrier to clear to exercise (including just getting out of the house for a walk).

I've had friends able to start exercising a few months in their treatments, when the medication gave them more mental leeway. Before that they were fighting to wake up and properly eat, and do anything really.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#207

Post by Mathnerd314 »

ParacelsusOfEgg wrote: post #197
Mathnerd314 wrote: post #123

The relationship isn't linear, you can see in https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/54/20/1195#sec-16 that above 2200 MET-minutes/week there is increased cancer risk which outweighs the cardiovascular benefits. Now admittedly it is a very weak correlation, and MET measurement is imprecise, but I think it is safe to say that there are risks associated with over-exercising and while being in shape is good, being a ultra-maratho…

Great share! That meta-analysis was a good read. I'd disagree slightly with your characterization of the author's findings on over-exercising; quoting from the discussion section: "Our findings do not provide evidence for increased mortality risk with physical activity amounts as high as seven times above the current recommended target range. All cause, CVD and CHD mortality risks were lower at physical activity leve…

Right. I think that statement is based on Supplement eTable 5, where they analyzed numbers up to 6,000 MET-minutes/week.

Using confidence intervals in this case is a bit misleading though. What would be most useful IMO would be the prediction interval for the lowest point estimate, as that could be used to determine if individual activity amounts are appropriate.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#208

Post by s1artibartfast »

EasyMark wrote: post #153
jagraff wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those numbers are assuming someone who skips a day of eating doesn’t increase their calorie consumption on other days to compensate

A lot of people assume humans are mechanistic, unfeeling CICO convertors and exclude psychological and physiological realities of losing weight. I've grown used to it. It took several tries for me to drop 50lbs and most of it was psychological and good habit formation. it took about 3 years to complete that journey.

I think the point is rather to communicate that there is no trick to around cico.

Instead, they are reinforcing that the path is clear, and the the barriers Are entirely psychological. Effort to build habits, effort to exert self control, effort to find solutions when you stumble.

If people are looking and waiting for a strategy that makes weight loss easier than inaction, they are bound for disappointment.

Some rare people find a passion that makes the process of getting healthy and fit more fun and easy than getting fatter, but that is exceedingly rare.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#209

Post by bradley13 »

busymom0 wrote: post #4

Slightly related: I have been engaging in powerlifting/weightlifting for over a decade. In my initial years, I was in the "just do weights, don't need cardio" camp. However, around 2018, I started doing cardio mostly to cut body weight as I wanted to hit my personal bests on squats, deadlifts, and bench at a lower body weight. I personally experienced that my weights moved much better, especially when I was doing mor…

You can turn weight training into cardio, by keeping breaks between sets down to just a few seconds.

If you go to a fitness center, some have machines set up for this. Mine used to call it circuit training. At home, if you're using free weights, have enough that you don't waste time changing plates.

Re: Cardio fitness is a strong, consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality

#210

Post by bazeblackwood »

late2part wrote: post #152
ideamotor wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I biked through Amsterdam as a commuter along with everyone else for a week, and it just blew me away. Everyone was absolutely predictable and part of the “school of fish”. No hesitation or ill-conceived politeness. It was only a week but it was so refreshing. I think about this experience daily when driving because I think of how much time would be saved if people just knew absolutely when to take their turn and too…

[flagged]

Oh brother, talk about histrionics…
Post reply on HN