It's Never Too Late to Start Exercising

It is never too late to start working out and taking care of yourself. The American Senior Fitness Association published some interesting findings from research conducted by a cardiologist named Paul Bhella of the JPS Health Network. The key takeaway was that older adults who exercised regularly were able to maintain their “youthful” hearts and even grow stronger hearts if they exercised even more. As with what I’ve shared in past posts, consistency and intensity of exercise make a huge difference.

At the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology in April, 2011, Dr. Bhella discussed his research team’s findings. They compared the hearts of subjects over age 65 who had exercised different amounts (if at all) during their lives with the hearts of subjects under 35 who, while healthy, were physically inactive. MRI results showed that youthful heart mass was maintained in the older adults who had habitually exercised four or five times per week. Better still, exercising six or seven times per week not only preserved mass, but also promoted new mass – exceeding that of youngsters (ages 25 to 34) who didn’t exercise. Similar outcomes were observed regarding heart elasticity.

So, if you’ve been waiting to kick off your own exercise program or you feel like it is “too late”, this research should motivate you. It’s never too late to reap the benefits from consistent exercise!