Walking, Fitness

Prevention Magazine statement on
new study suggesting walking not good enough;
Don't take your walking shoes off just yet!

Half an hour of brisk walking may make you feel better, but according to a new study it may not be enough to ward off premature death from heart disease. Michele Stanten, fitness editor of Prevention magazine, says, "Don't unlace your walking shoes yet!"

"This study is just a hill compared to the mountain of evidence we have showing that moderate levels of physical activity such as brisk walking are beneficial," says Richard Cotton, exercise physiologist and spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise. "This is one study of fewer than 2,000 people. That is not enough to indicate that light and moderate activity have no benefits. Larger, better designed studies have been done."

The findings, published this week in Heart, a British medical journal,
are based on a study of nearly 2,000 healthy, middle-aged men in Wales. At the beginning of the study, their activity level was determined by questionnaires and categorized by intensity: light (walking, bowling, and sailing), moderate (golf, digging, and dancing), and vigorous (climbing stairs, swimming, and jogging).

After about 10 years, the researchers reviewed the number of deaths and found that the most active guys were 62% less likely to die of heart disease - no surprise there! Many studies have found a dose-response, says I-Min Lee, MD, ScD, of Harvard Medical School. "That is, with increasing level of intensity, going from moderate to vigorous,
additional benefit can be achieved."

However, the new study did not find any protection for the light and moderate groups. One explanation may be that all the men were healthy, says study author Dr. John Yarnell of The Queen's University of Belfast. "Some important studies in men show benefit from moderate-intensity exercise in high-risk individuals."

Another drawback, according to Stanten, is that activity levels were only recorded at the beginning of the study. So it is possible that the men may have changed their exercise habits over the 10 years, which could impact the results.

Bottom line from Michele Stanten, fitness editor at Prevention 
magazine:

                           Don't stop walking!

Moderate exercise is a lot better than doing nothing at all. And there are many other benefits, such as losing weight, lowering cholesterol, decreasing blood pressure, improving mood, boosting energy, sleeping better, and much more. To increase those benefits and lower your risk
of death from heart disease, go ahead and push yourself a little harder: Walk a little faster (even if it's only for 30 seconds or so at a time), climb more stairs, or hit some hills.

This study is just one more piece of a big puzzle that is trying to determine exactly what types of exercise offer what types of benefits.