Clean_Eating 2019-09-01

1

While maintaining a healthy

weight is one of the biggest

draws to exercise, it shouldn’t

be the only one. Here are just

8 of the benefits of a regular

sweat session that have nothing

to do with your waistline and

everything to do with your health.

BY KAREN ASP

If 40 is the new 20, then 75 may be the new 40. In a study from the

Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers compared a group of lifelong

exercisers in their 70s to two groups: non-exercisers in their 70s and a

group of young exercisers, roughly in their 20s. The lifelong exercisers

had cardiovascular health similar to that of 40- or 45-year-olds as

well as a lower risk of early death and higher quality of life. The older

exercisers also had muscles with aerobic qualities comparable to the

young exercisers, so in other words, full preservation. Bottom line?

“Exercise wins,” says Scott Trappe, PhD, study co-author from Ball State

University in Muncie, Indiana. “If you’re exercising, keep it going, and if

you haven’t started yet, it’s never too late.”

You’ll keep

your body

decades

younger

Stop

Working Out

to Lose

Weight

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68 cleaneating.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019

HEALTH