Sticking To Cardio Or Weights Alone May Harm Your Longevity

Cardiovascular activity, like walking, running, or swimming, works your heart – in fact, the word comes from the Greek kardía, which refers to the organ.

Some research suggests regularly engaging in cardio, or “aerobic” activity, is linked to a longer life.

Then, there’s strength or resistance training, which is great for your bones and muscles.

It’s been linked to up to four years of extra life (woah).

But according to new research in BMJ Medicine, picking one or the other might not be the best choice for a longer life.

In this study, researchers followed more than 111,000 participants over 30 years.

They tracked the kind of exercise they did, as well as their health and lifespan.

All participants were “free of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory disease, or neurological disease” at the start of the study.

The researchers found, perhaps unsurprisingly, that staying active was linked to a longer lifespan.

Less expected, however, was the finding that, “The variety of physical activity was inversely associated with mortality, independent of total physical activity levels”.

Researchers found that those who partook in the greatest variety of exercise, from yoga to climbing stairs, gardening, and lifting weights, had a 19% higher life expectancy than those with the least exercise variety.

This seemed to stay true at all activity levels.

In other words, Harvard T.H. Chan explained, “exercise variety contributed to longevity regardless of how much total time participants spent exercising”.

Speaking to Harvard T.H. Chan, study author Yang Hu said, “People naturally choose different activities over time based on their preferences and health conditions.

“When deciding how to exercise, keep in mind that there may be extra health benefits to engaging in multiple types of physical activity, rather than relying on a single type alone”.

The paper did note that time spent exercising matters, too, however.

“The findings support the notion that promoting engagement in a diverse range of physical activity types, alongside increasing total physical activity levels, may help reduce the risk of premature death,” it concluded.