Auld Lang Syne

Well another year is here. I really fell off the blog wagon at the end but here’s to renewing activity. Resolutions are abound this time of year. I have posted before about exercise as medication, in fact I typically put in a plug about that with every post. But I figured I’d renew the post to give it some more life. I recently gave a lecture to residents about this as well, so I am transcribing it to this blog for the most part.

The reason to really harp on exercise and physical activity is this: Other than COVID-19 in 2021, he highest causes of death are non-communicable disease, which can largely be impacted by physical activity. To steal from WHO, physical inactivity ranks #4 for risk factors for overall morbidity and mortality WORLDWIDE. A study in Canada reported that 4/5 adults do not meet physical activity requirements, which could be assumed to be similar to the US.

At least 30 chronic diseases have evidence that supports benefits of exercise.

Now you don’t necessarily have to go to a gym, though I did read an article that gyms took a major hit in 2021 and several had to close. You don’t need to follow any specific exercise plan, the benefits come with any physical activity that gets the heart rate up. Physical activity = any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscle.

You can see my “Ringing in the New Year” post about exercise effects on specific disease processes. I did not include this little tidbit though! In a study of patients with Parkinson’s disease, a spin class was studied and showed reduction in symptoms in these patients and improved cognition. So it seem it can improve health and mental function.

Many studies have shown exercise to be better than medication in head-to-head comparison for treating mild-to-moderate disease. I know my preferred prescription to patients is exercise and diet modification, as opposed to focusing on medication. More of a ‘lifestyle prescription’ if you will. In patients that reach the recommended 150-300 minutes of exercise a week there is a 25-50% reduction in risk for most major chronic diseases. The type of exercise again doesn’t necessarily matter but it does need to be around a 5-7 on the ‘Perceived Exertion Scale"‘.

taken from: https://maximizepotentialtx.com/uncategorized/the-rating-of-perceived-exertion-rpe-scale/

Even a little bit counts. Just 15 minutes a day is associated with ~15% relative risk reduction, such as taking the stairs instead of an elevator.

raking leaves and bagging them can be quite the workout

ALWAYS make sure if there are any questions to consult with your physician, but light to moderate exercise is generally safe to start in folks who are feeling well overall. Some folks will need medical clearance prior to starting physical activity - if there is any question about safety a primary care or sports medicine physician should be able to answer this.

As always, stay safe out there and keep moving (150-300 minutes per week)!