Do you know if you exercise too much or too little?
We have all heard of unique therapeutic benefits of exercise for quality of life, cardiovascular health, healthy weight and longevity.
So, it is easy to assume, that more exercise = always better, but is it that simple?
Multiple studies have shown that chronic excessive endurance exercise will actually cause chronic inflammation and can be bad for our health.
Ultra-endurance races can inflict heart muscle damage, and sudden cardiac arrest occurs more often in marathons and triathlons than in shorter races.
So, what is the optimal dose of exercise? Ok, we are all different.
However, current studies suggest that 2.5 hours/week of moderate (brisk walking, jogging) or 75 min/week of vigorous(heart-pounding, sweat-producing) aerobic exercise, will give you maximal benefits.
If you are doing >10 hours/week, it can actually send your body into the chronic “stress mode”, and will do the opposite to your health – increase your blood pressure, slow down your metabolism, slow down desired weight loss, especially after the age of 45.
It is also important to take at least one day per week off from vigorous exercise, and maybe try Pilates, stretching or yoga instead.
If you are wondering about low-to-moderate intensity workout, e.g. walking at a comfortable pace, gardening, dancing, then there is no concern for the upper limit of its benefits!
References:
O’Keefe et al. The Goldilocks Zone for Exercise, 2018
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30228692