Facts and Myths about Exercise

Excellent physical condition is not equivalent to good health. Arnold Schwarzenegger needed to have a heart valve replaced.  Jean-Claude Van Damme, a famous martial arts actor, suffers from a hearing loss.

Chronic training for and competing in extreme endurance events such as marathons, ultra marathons, ironman distance triathlons, and very long distance bicycle races, can cause transient acute volume overload of the atria and right ventricle, with transient reductions in right ventricular ejection fraction and elevations of cardiac biomarkers, all of which return to normal within 1 week. Over months to years of repetitive injury, this process, in some individuals, may lead to patchy myocardial fibrosis, particularly in the atria, interventricular septum, and right ventricle, creating a substrate for atrial and ventricular arrhythmias. Additionally, long-term excessive sustained exercise may be associated with coronary artery calcification, diastolic dysfunction, and large-artery wall stiffening.

Running is more stressful on the body than walking and so is not recommended for the non-athlete.  Especially, since walking produces similar health benefits to running.  A study (used the National Runners’ (n=33 060) and Walkers’ (n=15 945) Health Study cohorts to examine the effect of differences in exercise mode and thereby exercise intensity on coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors.  It was discovered that equivalent energy expenditures by moderate (walking) and vigorous (running) exercise produced similar risk reductions for hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes mellitus, and possibly CHD.

Any type of exercise that requires a movement to be repeated many times can also lead to repetitive strain injuries and eventually arthritis.Lifting more than half your body weight can raise your systolic pressure to 370 millimeters mercury. (Normal systolic pressure is below 120 and normal diastolic pressure, measured as the heart rests between beats, is below 80.).  The increased pressure may cause an aortic dissection, in which the heart’s main artery tears.  This requires immediate surgical intervention to stem blood loss resulting in death.

Daily activity can also improve depression amongst Alzheimer's patients and makes it easier to cope with daily tasks. Research has shown that physical activity engages the brain to create new neurons and blood vessels.

Whether we gain, lose or maintain body weight is dependent upon three things: the number of calories: required to maintain life (our metabolism), burned through activity, and consumed.Thus, diet and not exercise is the primary factor in losing weight Obese people can lose weight, probably due to the increased rate of metabolism, by practicing Senobi breathing. This breathing technique, which is simple to learn and only requires 1 minute of practice before each mea. Breathing exercise can also help a benign, enlarged prostate and arrhythmias.