Workout Equipment

A recent study published in the Journal of American Medical Association and carried out at the University of South Carolina concludes that your physical fitness is more vital than what you weigh when it comes to safeguarding your health.

For 12 years, researchers observed the health and mortality of 2,600 people age 60 and older. The researchers monitored the participants obesity by measuring body mass index, waist circumference and percentage of body fat. The physical fitness of the participants was also rated by timing a workout on a treadmill with an increasing incline.

Participants were divided into fifths based on how well they scored on the treadmill test. Those in the lowest fifth were four times more likely to die during the study period as those in the top fifth.

“Being fit provides protection against mortality in these men and women 60 and older, whether they’re normal weight, overweight or obese,” said researcher Stephen Blair.

Just a relatively small increase in fitness level amounted to a dramatic decrease in mortality; the lowest fitness group had double the mortality rate of even the next lowest group. From this research, Blair determined that those who are overweight should definitely be encouraged to exercise, even if it is only in small amounts in the beginning.

“If you’re overweight or obese and you’re inactive and not in shape and you start taking three 10-minute walks a day and you do that no less than five days a week, you’re not going to drop an huge amount of weight,” Blair said. “You will still be heavy. But you’re going to be a great deal healthier if you do that.”

Blair noted that it is still vital to maintain a healthy weight and eat a good diet, particularly one high in fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

“But what happens all too often is we focus almost solely on obesity and forget the activity and fitness part.”

This post was based on a post from Natural News - Independent news on natural health by David Gutierrez.