Could Lifting Some Weights Every Week Extend Your Life? Yes, Study Says

Each week, a half-hour of muscle-strengthening exercise such as weightlifting, push-ups, or heavy gardening might help cut the chance of death by any cause by even a fifth, as per a new worldwide study of research done over three decades.

Muscle strengthening exercises are recommended in health recommendations largely for their musculoskeletal health advantages. Although previous studies revealed a relationship to a decreased risk of mortality, researchers were unsure of the ideal “dosage” until recently. To determine this, Japanese researchers combed databases for related findings that included people without significant health problems who had been studied for at minimum two years.

The investigation discovered that engaging in 30 to  1 hour of muscle strengthening activities each week is associated with a 10% to 20% reduction in the chance of mortality from all causes, as well as heart disease and cancer. The British Journal of Sports Medicine reported the findings.

Adults should engage in strengthening exercises involving all main muscle groups at minimum 2 times a week, as well as 150 minutes of medium-intensity physical activity. The study discovered that individuals profit the greatest by doing both on a consistent basis. The researchers discovered that 30 to 60 minutes of muscle-strengthening exercises each week reduced the chance of mortality from any illness, heart disease, or cancer by between 10% and 20%.

Joint examination of muscle strengthening as well as aerobic activities revealed that when these two kinds of activities were joined, the risk of mortality from any cause, cardiovascular disease, or cancer was much lower: 40%, 46%, as well as 28% lower, respectively.

The researchers recognized the limitations of their results,the most significant of which was that information for each of the variables evaluated were aggregated from just a few studies.