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Walk Fit for Senior Vigour

30th March, 2009 - Posted by health news - No Comments

Want to live longer? Most of us do. Well, here is some good news. Swedish researchers at the University of Uppsala have monitored over 2,200 men from the age of 50 years. Those who increased activity levels from the age of 50 to 60 lived as long as those already exercising regularly in middle age. So it’s never too late to begin.

The research began in the early 1970s when the men were aged 50. They were put into three groups. High levels of activity – those who did at least 3 hours sport or heavy gardening each week. Moderate levels of activity – those who did several hours of walking exercise or cycling. Sedentary – those who spent most of their free time watching TV or similar activities.

Exercise habits were looked at again when the men were 60 years old. Those doing high levels of activity lived 2.3 years longer than those doing medium levels of activity and1.1 years longer than those doing medium levels of activity. These figures were adjusted to take into account smoking, alcohol consumption and weight.

Those in the two lower groups who increased their activity levels from the age of 50 to 60 also lived longest. The impact on lifespan of increasing exercise was the same as giving up smoking. This research applies at present only to men, but there is no reason to believe that women would be fundamentally different.

If you want to join the high activity group and have no interest in sports, gardening is the way to go. If you continue a walking fitness program and add to it an hour or so gardening a day you will feel the benefit. Gardening can influence whole-body bone mineral density because it includes weight-bearing motions such as pushing a mower, digging holes, pulling weeds, carrying soil, and other tasks which exercise muscle groups in the entire body.

Another advantage of gardening is that it results in improvement of mental health and fights off depression. Working outdoors to make a garden grow can improve your state of mind as well as your physical health. You must balance the time spent gardening with your other exercise. There are times of year when you will be working hard in the garden and will need less walking exercise. Other times you can have a good walk, come home and just enjoy the flowers.

We do, of course, know that living a healthy life can reduce the risk of dying from heart and circulatory disease. By not smoking, drinking alcohol in moderation and eating a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, plus walking fitness or gardening we can all improve our chances of living longer. The really good news is it’s never too late.

P.S. Read how to loose weight.