Study Weight Training May Be More Cardioprotective Than Cardio

CFC

Bluelight Crew
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Mar 9, 2013
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...in normal populations.

Bear in mind that 'normal' is key when considering studies like this. These are not people necessarily performing high-intensity cardio or pushing their heart hard when performing cardio, like athletes or keen hobbyists would. The differentiation in the study was simply between static/isometric weight-lifting versus "dynamic" exercise (ie walking, cycling, running etc).

Nevertheless, it's an interesting finding.

Given that the benefits are most strongly associated with younger people (ie over a longer timeframe), I would postulate that the reason is because, ultimately, weight training increases the amount of LBM. And LBM (ie, large amounts of muscle mass) is very strongly associated with improved health on all measures over the long-term. Even relatively sedentary but otherwise highly muscular men tend to have reasonable risks for cardiovascular issues in later life versus slender/skinny but active men.

I'm hoping we'll get a full paper out of them soon. Until then, read on here:

Different types of physical activity offer varying protection against heart disease: Static activity, such as strength training, appears more beneficial
 
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