Strength-Promoting Exercise Could Add Years to Your Life

Adults who regularly perform some type of strength-promoting exercise (SPE) have a 23 percent lower risk of premature death by any means and a 31 percent lower risk of cancer-related deaths, according to the largest study to date comparing mortality outcomes of various types of exercise. This study included over 80,000 adults and was led by the University of Sydney. The findings were published October 31 in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

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One of the most important takeaways from this study is that SPE may be just as vital to our health and longevity as aerobic exercise. The latest empirical evidence suggests that a perfectly balanced fitness regimen should include a combination of both low-intensity and/or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) along with some type of muscular-strengthening resistance training at least twice a week.

For those of us who hate lifting weights, the best news of this study may be that you don't have to become a gym rat to reap the benefits of strength-promoting exercises that fit your lifestyle. For example, the researchers found that using your own body weight to increase muscular strength by doing push-ups, sit-ups, lunges, tricep dips, etc. is just as effective as pumping iron at the gym when it comes to increasing longevity.

In a statement, lead author Emmanuel Stamatakis from the School of Public Health and the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney explains: "When people think of strength training they instantly think of doing weights in a gym, but that doesn't have to be the case. Many people are intimidated by gyms, the costs or the culture they promote, so it's great to know that anyone can do classic exercises like triceps dips, sit-ups, push-ups or lunges in their own home or local park and potentially reap the same health benefits."

“While strength training has been given some attention for functional benefits as we age, little research has looked at its impact on mortality. This study shows exercise that promotes muscular strength may be just as important for health as aerobic activities like jogging or cycling," Stamatakis said. "And assuming our findings reflect cause and effect relationships, it may be even more vital when it comes to reducing risk of death from cancer."

The World Health Organization's Physical Activity Guidelines for adults currently recommends 150 minutes of aerobic activity, plus two days of muscle-strengthening activities each week. That said, a large prospective cohort study of almost 140,000 older U.S. adults, published October 19 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that walking less than the currently recommended guideline of 150 minutes per week was enough physical activity to significantly improve public health outcomes and lower mortality risk compared to inactivity.

Summary of Strength-Promoting Exercise Findings by Stamatakis et al.

• Participation in any strength-promoting exercise was associated with a 23 percent reduction in all-cause mortality and a 31 percent reduction in cancer mortality.
• Using one's own bodyweight for any SPE that could be performed without equipment yielded comparable results to gym-based activities.
• Adherence to WHO's strength-promoting exercise twice a week guideline alone was associated with reduced risk of cancer-related death, but adherence to the WHO's aerobic physical activity guideline alone was not.
• Adherence to WHO's strength-promoting exercise and aerobic exercise guidelines combined was associated with a greater risk reduction in mortality than aerobic physical activity alone.
• There was no evidence of an association between strength-promoting exercise and cardiovascular disease mortality.

Notably, because SPE does not appear to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease mortality, it's important to remember that some type of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) exercise such as walking, jogging, or bicycling should always be a part of your weekly physical activity routine.

For the record: Although this study was observational, adjustments were made to reduce the influence of other factors such as age, sex, health status, lifestyle behaviors, and education level. Additionally, all participants with pre-existing cardiovascular disease or cancer at baseline were excluded from the study to reduce the possibility of skewing the results due to those with pre-existing conditions inherently participating less in strength-promoting and/or aerobic exercise on a regular basis.