The most difficult thing for me in a healthy lifestyle is physical activity, I just can’t find a type of activity that would overcome my laziness and become a drug for me. While I settled on weight training in the gym, I at least feel the effect of this type of exercise, both physically and emotionally. But running did not impress me much from this point of view. However, recent research on running has raised doubts about its ineffectiveness.
For those who, like me, find it difficult to choose the type of workout that will fit into the schedule and will provide the maximum health benefits, the results of this study, published in the journal of the American College of Cardiology, may be interesting.
In the course of it, it was found that running helps reduce the overall risk of death caused by disease, and in particular, cardiovascular disease. Moreover, the risk of death is reduced no matter how far, how fast or how often we run.
For a decade and a half, scientists have collected information on the health status of 55 men and women between the ages of 137 and 18.
Scientists analyzed the relationship between running, overall mortality and mortality from cardiovascular disease.
According to the study, runners were 30% less at risk of dying overall and 45% less at risk of dying from heart disease or stroke. (In particular, for people who have been running for 6 years or more, these figures were 29% and 50%, respectively).
Moreover, even among those runners who were overweight or smoked for many years, mortality was lower than among people who did not practice running, regardless of their bad habits and excess weight.
In addition, it turned out that runners lived on average 3 years longer than those who did not run.
Results were not weighed against individual factors such as gender and age, and exercise intensity (including distance, running speed and frequency). The study did not directly investigate how and why running affects the risk of premature death, but it turned out that only running gives such results.
Perhaps the key is that short-term and intense exercise is the health benefit, so jogging for 5 minutes is a good option that anyone can afford.
Keep in mind that if you are a beginner, then before starting such training, you need to assess your health and consult your doctor, especially if you have or have had health problems in the past. And if after 5 minutes of running you realize that this type of workout is not suitable for you, try switching: a jump rope, an exercise bike, or any other type of intense exercise. Five minutes of effort can add years to your life.