Exercise and youth

[jyb]

After reading RP, I concluded that lots of exercise may not be as healthy as I thought if at all. I thought that studies showing positive effects might just be confusing causation and correlation (someone exercising is probably healthier to start with which is why one is able and willing to exercise), or provides just some short-term stimulating effects and might not be good long term.

However, there is more to that. Some researchers who observe that people exercising look healthier have a cellular explanation, as in the link below. How can it be reconciled with RP's paradigm?

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/phys-ed-how-exercising-keeps-your-cells-young/

It ‘‘was striking,’’ recalls Dr. Christian Werner, an internal-medicine resident at Saarland University Clinic in Homburg, ‘‘to see in our study that many of the middle-aged athletes looked much younger than sedentary control subjects of the same age.’’

The sedentary older subjects had telomeres that were on average 40 percent shorter than in the sedentary young subjects, suggesting that the older subjects’ cells were, like them, aging.

 

[j.]

I also suspect that exercise might be good for people with extremely good metabolisms, but that study might be faulty, since they measure success using telomeres, and if I recall correctly RP thought that theories around telomeres are bs.

I think the only people who should exercise are those that feel so full of energy that their bodies are pretty much begging them to exercise.

 

[jaguar43]

After reading RP, I concluded that lots of exercise may not be as healthy as I thought if at all. I thought that studies showing positive effects might just be confusing causation and correlation (someone exercising is probably healthier to start with which is why one is able and willing to exercise), or provides just some short-term stimulating effects and might not be good long term.

However, there is more to that. Some researchers who observe that people exercising look healthier have a cellular explanation, as in the link below. How can it be reconciled with RP's paradigm?

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/phys-ed-how-exercising-keeps-your-cells-young/

It ‘‘was striking,’’ recalls Dr. Christian Werner, an internal-medicine resident at Saarland University Clinic in Homburg, ‘‘to see in our study that many of the middle-aged athletes looked much younger than sedentary control subjects of the same age.’’

The sedentary older subjects had telomeres that were on average 40 percent shorter than in the sedentary young subjects, suggesting that the older subjects’ cells were, like them, aging.

I think people who are more healthy are likely to exercise than those who are not healthy. It goes to show how epigenetics and environmental characteristics can effect a person's livelihood.

 

[gretchen]

Peat says "breathless exercise" lowers the metabolism due to being stressful and is therefore pro-aging.

As for exercising to increase telomeres/telomerase, you can look at any number of Hollywood starlets who do a lot of cardio and see that it doesn't make them look younger; a lot of them actually look their age or older.

 

[pboy]

if you force yourself to exercise for a weird reason and don't enjoy it its not good for you. If you play and have fun and move around its good for you

 

[HDD]

Horseshoes, anyone?

 

[Jenn]

Horseshoes, anyone?

I'm game!

 

[HDD]

Played this with my dad up into his eighties. He beat everyone!

 

[pboy]

horseshoes and backyard volleyball...awesome!

 

[jaa]

I had my first muay thai class in 6 months last night and it was mostly not enjoyable. The majority of the class consisted of conditioning drills compared to a minor portion of the fun sport specific skills. This made me think back to my younger days playing sports, and how they started off as fun (playing the sport) and eventually morphed into structured activities not dissimilar to many jobs (mandatory practice of conditioning drills unrelated to play). I wonder how much healthier kids would be on a whole if they were just allowed to play / train to levels they found enjoyable. And if it's possible to compete at a high level in major sports by focusing on skills and breathing exercises (buteyko for example) and getting your conditioning from sports related play instead of beating the pavement til you puke.

 

[Swandattur]

I wonder where super competitive people fit in in Peat's theories. Is it good, bad or just neutral? It seems like being too competitive ruins the fun. Being a bit competitive while retaining a sense of fun seems good.