Answers About Exercise

1. When we move our bodies, many physiological changes happen in our cells to improve cardiovascular, neurological, and metabolic health.
2. Aerobic exercise activates over 9,000 distinct molecules in our body that influence health positively. A sedentary adult can increase the metabolism of fat and nonfat fuel sources, improve mitochondria function, and increase ATP production with just one session of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise
3.  aerobic exercise improves symptoms of depression, especially in people with more severe symptoms.
4. Aerobic exercise may improve memory function in older adults by increasing cerebral blood flow in brain regions involved in memory.
5. Exercise is one of the best lifestyle tools for disease prevention and reduction of disease burden (individual and population)
6. Exercise slows aging by improving muscle mass, tissue vascularization, and oxygenation.
7. Muscle mass and strength decline with age. Starting at age 50, the average person loses 1% of yearly muscle mass and 3% of muscle strength. The loss will accelerate without strength training. This muscle loss creates bone loss and increases the risk of falls and hip fractures. 22-58% of older adults with hip fractures will die in 12 months.
8. Exercise increases muscle mass. Greater muscle mass increases metabolism, improves insulin sensitivity, and protects against diabetes.
9. Higher muscle mass is associated with a 30% reduction in mortality rate.
10. Exercise improves skin. Resistance training slows skin aging 

Current Physical Activity Guidelines From The United States Department Of Health And Human Services

For substantial health benefits, adults should do at least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) to 300 minutes (5 hours) a week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity, 75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) to 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity, or an equivalent combination of moderate—and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity. Aerobic activity should be spread throughout the week. 

Engaging in physical activity beyond the equivalent of 300 minutes (5 hours) of moderate-intensity physical activity a week can provide additional health benefits.

 Adults should also do muscle-strengthening activities of moderate or greater intensity that involve all major muscle groups on two or more days a week, as these activities provide additional health benefits.

A large-scale prospective study found that among adults 50 years of age and older, 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week reduced the risk of death from all causes by 27 percent. Older adults who achieved 60 minutes of vigorous exercise per week had a 32 percent reduction in risk of death.[2] Among adults 40 years and older, more calories burned with daily physical activity reduced the risk of death from all causes.[3]FoundMyFitness Topic – Aerobic exercise. https://www.foundmyfitness.com/topics/aerobic-exercise 

 In 2008, only 18 percent of adults in the United States met the physical activity guidelines.

 It improved to 24 percent in 2017.[1] However, we are still a long way from the optimal health goal.

It is encouraging to know that even small bouts of exercise, such as 4 minutes per day of vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA), can slash cancer risk by 20%—with more significant benefits at higher doses.

 Only two 25-minute sessions of resistance exercise per week improve depression symptoms in young adults.

Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factors And Exercise

1. Exercise is a potent stimulus for generating Brain-derived neurotrophic factors (BDNF). BDNF is an endogenous neuropeptide that regulates and influences axonal growth, survival, and differentiation of neurons and affects synapsis plasticity. Stress and cortisol levels affect BDNF levels. They play an essential role in many pathways affecting many disorders, including depression, dementia, obesity, and diabetes.BDNF function declines during aging and may be responsible for memory loss, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease.
2. Exercise that generates an 80 percent maximum heart rate for at least 40 minutes will likely elevate BDNF significantly.
3. Sauna bathing also increases BDNF activity. A study in Finland found that cardiorespiratory fitness combined with frequent sauna use may work synergistically to reduce cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.

FoundMyFitness Topic – Aerobic exercise. https://www.foundmyfitness.com/topics/aerobic-exercise 

Exercise And Weight Management

Most people underestimate their self-reported energy intake by about 600 calories per day and overestimate their physical activity levels by nearly 50%. 

 If you’re not losing weight with your current energy intake, your daily calorie intake is likely too high for what you’re burning.

Tracking calories for a few weeks to a month would benefit people and provide valuable insight into their daily calorie intake.

Basal metabolic rate (BMR) or Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR)

It refers to the minimal amount of calories needed to maintain our weight at rest. 

For active people, it accounts for about 60% of total daily energy expenditure. Body size and lean body mass account for about 75% of the variance in BMR between individuals. Learning about your body composition might help you to navigate better than just knowing your BMR and your daily calorie needs.

How To Calculate Your 

Thermic effect of food (TEF):

 It is the energy expended when we ingest, digest, and absorb food. TEF accounts for about 10% of total daily energy expenditure.

Negative Calorie Foods: Can Eating Burn Calories? – Tomas Hensrud Gulla. https://www.gulla.net/en/ai/negative-calorie-foods-can-eating-burn-calories/

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT): 

TEF is the energy expended doing daily activities. It accounts for around 30% of total daily energy expenditure.

Physical activity: 

Physical activity is the energy we expend doing purposeful exercise. The amount that physical activity contributes to total daily energy expenditure varies widely from person to person. 

Exercising For Muscle Strength 

Your workout plan matters less than your ability to do it consistently. Good enough is plenty. It is crucial to find exercises that excite you and cause no pain, allowing for consistent execution. Diversifying exercises can help maintain motivation, but switching too often can prevent you from maximizing the training of individual muscles or muscle groups.

Avoid overcomplicating your routine.

 2–3 sets per exercise accomplish 46% greater gains in strength than a single set of exercises,  and there might be no further benefit to performing 4–6 sets per exercise. Training to failure might be counterproductive to building strength as it increases fatigue and could impair training.

Prevent injury.

 Increase your workout intensity gradually to minimize injury risk. Regular exercise makes you less sensitive to pain and less prone to injury. Don’t avoid activity when injured—modify it, listen to your body, and keep moving.

Sleep deprivation makes your body more prone to injury. Chronic sleep deprivation is a significant risk factor for muscle injury. Sleeping 4 hours per night compared to 8 hours per night increases the risk of injury by 130%. 

Exercise And Menopause

Hormonal changes during menopause can reduce energy levels and negatively impact sleep. The resulting increased fatigue may lead to a reduction in NEAT (not exercise activity thermogenic). The decrease in spontaneous movement could explain some of the weight gain experienced by women during menopause.

Should postmenopausal women do cardio or weights? 

Both are beneficial. Choosing the exercise you enjoy will help you exercise more regularly. Weight training is the key to gaining and maintaining muscle at every stage of a woman’s life. Women can build as much muscle as men relative to their starting lean mass.

Can you safely exercise at any age?

A study of older adults (71 years on average) who performed heavy resistance training for 1 year showed that they improved muscle mass, body fat percentage, visceral fat, and mental health. The benefits lasted up to 4 years. When the participants were assessed 3 years after the training program was completed, they maintained greater leg strength than the adults who performed no strength or lower-intensity strength training. 

 Twenty grams of high-quality protein stimulates muscle protein synthesis for 4–6 hours in young, healthy adults. The response magnitude is less powerful and of lesser duration in older adults, who need a larger protein dose to achieve a similar amount of muscle protein synthesis. 

Protein intake without training provides limited anabolic benefits. Exercise is necessary.

The total daily protein intake is the most critical lever for most people

Older adults may benefit from consuming protein more often due to their lower sensitivity to protein—anabolic resistance.

Do we need to eat proteins right after a workout?

No. Amino acids are available for muscle synthesis for a few hours after a meal, and exercise increases the muscles’ sensitivity to protein for up to 24 hours.

Every tissue in the body is subjected to a constant state of breakdown and renewal. Muscle tissue regenerates about 1–2% daily and completes its regeneration every 50–100 days.

The body synthesizes over 300 grams of new protein daily. Still, most people only consume one-third or less of this amount.

The current RDA recommendation for dietary protein is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day (g/kg/day) or 0.36 grams per pound. 1A more appropriate daily amount is 1.2 grams per kilo  

Weight Loss And Muscle Mass 

During weight loss, some of the weight lost will be fat mass (75-80%), and some will be lean or muscle mass(20–25%), including muscle, bones, organ tissue, water, blood, and other non-fat tissues. This loss can be mitigated when protein intake is maintained or increased. Individuals who consume a high-protein, low-fat, energy-restricted diet (containing about 1.25 g/kg/day or 30% of total energy intake from protein) lose more body weight and fat mass and retain more fat-free mass than individuals who consume a similar diet with a lower protein content.

A high protein intake can protect against muscle loss during inactivity, such as during hospitalization or injuries. 

How should one distribute protein throughout the day?

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner should contain at least 20–25 grams of high-quality protein.

Consuming most of the day’s protein in a single meal has been proven to be no different from protein distribution over four meals in young women, while in older women, eating most of the protein in a single meal has been proven superior to an even protein meal distribution.

Should we use collagen supplementation?

Collagen might not be helpful for muscle protein synthesis and muscle building. Still, its high glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline content could benefit the health of collagen-rich tissues like skin, joints, and bones. Hydrolyzed collagen has excellent absorption and utilization.