LIFE SATISFACTION
How satisfied is your life? Are you in a happy relationship? Do you feel rewarded in your job? What about your personal training sessions? Here is a study that promotes satisfaction with life may promote heart health. Studies show that the mental states of stress and depression are associated with increased risk of heart disease.
Researchers wanted to determine whether a positive frame of mind would have an inverse effect and reduce heart disease risk. To test this theory, they reviewed data from almost 8,000 British civil servants with an average age of 49 years. Study subjects responded to questions regarding life satisfaction in seven life domains and provided health records related to heart disease for a period of approximately 6 years.
Data analysis showed that life satisfaction in four domains—job, family, sex and self—was associated with a heart disease risk reduction of approximately 13%. No association emerged between risk reduction and satisfaction with love relationships, leisure activities, standard of living or personal training.
Lead study author, Julia Boehm, PhD—from the department of society, human development and health at Harvard School of Public Health—told Medical News Today, “Although conventional risk factors such as health behaviors, blood pressure, lipids and body mass index did not explain the relationship between life satisfaction and total coronary heart disease, other behavioral or biological mechanisms that promote resilience cannot be ruled out. Moreover, these findings suggest that interventions to bolster positive psychological states—not just alleviate negative psychological states—may be relevant among high-risk individuals.”
More research was recommended, particularly since the study was associational. The study appeared in the European Heart Journal (2011; doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehr203).
For more information on life satisfaction, contact St. Louis Personal Fitness Trainer, Maurie Cofman, C.E.S.
Resistance Exercise fountain of Youth
When you think of exercise, do you think of aerobic or cardiovascular activities? Resistance or strength training is also exercise and has been touted as the fountain of youth. Below is a study that proves it.
It’s generally understood that in the course of the aging process, the body begins to decay. The hard and soft tissue structures gradually deteriorate, and physical activity capacity becomes limited. According to a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (2011; 25 [1], 1–9), age-related sarcopenia may not have to be a necessary component of the aging process. The study was designed to determine the effects of resistance exercise on serum hormones and molecules in younger and older men. At baseline, blood and muscle samples were taken from the subjects.
The subjects then completed 3 sets of 10 repetitions at 80% of 1 repetition maximum of the following exercises: Smith squat, leg press and leg extension. Blood and muscle samples were taken at 5 minutes postexercise and again 24 hours later. The younger men showed greater levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1, a hormone associated with muscle growth) than older men at all times. On the other hand, the older males presented with higher levels of gene expressions linked to age-related muscular degeneration. However, at 24 hours postexercise, IGF-1 had significantly increased in the older group. The researchers were hopeful that continued study “can help elucidate modifications to resistance exercise training to optimize results and ultimately help Certified Personal Trainers and fitness professionals better understand muscle physiology with exercise and advancing age.”
Jade Teta, ND, CSCS, co-owner of Metabolic Effect in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, suggests that those exercise protocols are already in practice. “This shows decreased growth hormones in the elderly may not be as related to aging as we thought,” he says. “The real fountain of youth lies in the zealous pursuit of weight training, which—when done correctly—is also aerobic in nature. The muscle-building and hormone-producing effects of weight training hold the true potential to halt the aging process.”
For more information on resistance exercise, contact St. Louis Personal Fitness Trainer, Maurie Cofman, C.E.S.
