It's been proven. Exercise extends your life
Discussion
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-11/baw...
Not too sure on if they mean you do 40 years of exercise after the age of 40 or exercise all your life... but the net gain is worth it.
The figures would go like this:-
75min per week = 108 days (0.3 years) over 40 years = 1.8 more years life, so you're 1.5 years up.
If this were business, it would be called a sound investment.
So all those couch potatoes who say "I don't want to waste 10% of my life doing exercise to gain just 5% more life" are wrong. You would gain much more life than you would've wasted by doing exercise it took to gain that life. But then, we always knew they were wrong... except now, we get to laugh at them as well.
Not too sure on if they mean you do 40 years of exercise after the age of 40 or exercise all your life... but the net gain is worth it.
The figures would go like this:-
75min per week = 108 days (0.3 years) over 40 years = 1.8 more years life, so you're 1.5 years up.
If this were business, it would be called a sound investment.
So all those couch potatoes who say "I don't want to waste 10% of my life doing exercise to gain just 5% more life" are wrong. You would gain much more life than you would've wasted by doing exercise it took to gain that life. But then, we always knew they were wrong... except now, we get to laugh at them as well.

randlemarcus said:
And on the flipside, you've burnt the time when you are capable of doing something much more fun instead, and get back an extra 1.5 years dribbling into your bedpan, while being ignored in your council funded care home 
It's a good point that longevity in itself doesn't seem like a worthy goal to me. Quality of life is more important to me than keeping going for as long as possible. Part of my quality of life is daily exercise though 
ewenm said:
randlemarcus said:
And on the flipside, you've burnt the time when you are capable of doing something much more fun instead, and get back an extra 1.5 years dribbling into your bedpan, while being ignored in your council funded care home 
It's a good point that longevity in itself doesn't seem like a worthy goal to me. Quality of life is more important to me than keeping going for as long as possible. Part of my quality of life is daily exercise though 
Some quick googles that were so obvious I couldn't even be bothered to read the articles;
www.heart.org/.../Physical-activity-improves-quali...
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/11/051110215438...
usatoday30.usatoday.com/.../2009-02-09-quality-life-exercise_N.htm
49plusandholding.com/regular-exercis/
Exercise improves longevity and quality.
Maybe I should just go round punching fat people in the guts to prove my point? Sounds like a good way to save the NHS.

I was making the more general point that lots of people seem to think that "longer life = better", without adding in the caveat of "longer life with good health = better".
Edit: And for some even that may not be true as "better" is a subjective measure.
Edit: And for some even that may not be true as "better" is a subjective measure.
Edited by ewenm on Wednesday 7th November 14:17
ewenm said:
I was making the more general point that lots of people seem to think that "longer life = better", without adding in the caveat of "longer life with good health = better".
Of course. But to live life without exercise, is a life of a total lack of fitness, and probably with it, levels of obesity (or a restricted boring diet).The number of problems that people live with today that they think are just a fact of life - Digestive problems, bad smells, type 2 diabetes, blindness, unable to do even light exercise without feeling pushed, can't play with your kids, stress, skin problems, public embarassment, heart disease, joint problems and DJD, back pain, lack of flexibility, shooting pains, knee pain, aneurisms, hemorrhages, headaches, pins and needles, cold sweats, clammy hands, heart attacks, anxiety, panic attacks, sleep problems, depression, breathing problems, bacterial and viral infections, reduced immune system functionality, breeding bacterial infestations in excess folds of skin, being bullied... etc. etc.
To list a very small number of common problems.
These are not normal everyday issues! Fit people generally do not get these and certainly not a combination of most of these things like the unfit and obese. I'm pretty certain that would constitute a better quality of life to most people...
Associated problems due to a lack of exercise leads to a lingering, debilitating and painful death.
horza said:
So you won't have a heart attack/stroke/brain haemorrhage/cancer if you're fit?
Oh jeez.... How many times do we have to hear it??? "I had a mate/dad/brother who was a triathlon runner, non-smoker, non-drinker, fittest guy I knew, but he had a stroke/heart attack aged 34".
Being fit means you have a better chance of living longer and healthier. It is not a written GUARANTEE you will live longer!! Is it that hard to comprehend???
King Herald said:
Oh jeez....
How many times do we have to hear it??? "I had a mate/dad/brother who was a triathlon runner, non-smoker, non-drinker, fittest guy I knew, but he had a stroke/heart attack aged 34".
Being fit means you have a better chance of living longer and healthier. It is not a written GUARANTEE you will live longer!! Is it that hard to comprehend???
I agree. I just think the smug approach of the OP is slightly worrying. How many times do we have to hear it??? "I had a mate/dad/brother who was a triathlon runner, non-smoker, non-drinker, fittest guy I knew, but he had a stroke/heart attack aged 34".
Being fit means you have a better chance of living longer and healthier. It is not a written GUARANTEE you will live longer!! Is it that hard to comprehend???
I think the quality of life thing is more relevant than actually living longer, which with all due respect, cannot be proved, and may not be a good thing anyway, especially if that extra year is an extra year of pissing yourself in a home somewhere.
Tell you what though, I used to be reasonably fit. Nothing amazing, but now I'm not, and I don't feel anything like as good as I used to. I've started again but have an uphill battle to regain any fitness at all.
Too many years of drinking and smoking have probably now seen to it that I'll always be unfit (and slightly overweight). I can only really now make the most of what I have left, as I suspect most of the damage has been done. If there's one thing I would go back and change, I'd treat my body better. Although only 33, my lifestyle has been such that I am expecting a hideous disease sometime in the not too distant future.
So if you're young, look after your body, don't do what i did, and regret it.
Tell you what though, I used to be reasonably fit. Nothing amazing, but now I'm not, and I don't feel anything like as good as I used to. I've started again but have an uphill battle to regain any fitness at all.
Too many years of drinking and smoking have probably now seen to it that I'll always be unfit (and slightly overweight). I can only really now make the most of what I have left, as I suspect most of the damage has been done. If there's one thing I would go back and change, I'd treat my body better. Although only 33, my lifestyle has been such that I am expecting a hideous disease sometime in the not too distant future.
So if you're young, look after your body, don't do what i did, and regret it.
Oh I'm not giving in, at all. But I don't think I'll ever even manage to be even averagely fit again. I've started running again. But I can now only jog for maybe 1/3 of the time, walk the rest. Did 2.4 miles in 27 minutes yesterday (which is better than my first attempt, but still abysmal). I was wheezing for the next 3 hours.
I walked up some Mountain (Penys Ghent?) in the York Dales. Despite being one of the youngest there, and not the heaviest even, I was certainly the closest to death. I'm surprised I made it back alive!!
ETA: Its not just that, I'm nowhere near as mentally sharp, and always feel slightly "depressed" now. I'm in temp employment at the moment, in a job I've no right to be in, but once it ends, I'm not confident I'll be able to get another.
Lifes a b
h, eh?
I walked up some Mountain (Penys Ghent?) in the York Dales. Despite being one of the youngest there, and not the heaviest even, I was certainly the closest to death. I'm surprised I made it back alive!!

ETA: Its not just that, I'm nowhere near as mentally sharp, and always feel slightly "depressed" now. I'm in temp employment at the moment, in a job I've no right to be in, but once it ends, I'm not confident I'll be able to get another.
Lifes a b
h, eh?Edited by TameRacingDriver on Wednesday 7th November 16:56
horza said:
King Herald said:
Oh jeez....
How many times do we have to hear it??? "I had a mate/dad/brother who was a triathlon runner, non-smoker, non-drinker, fittest guy I knew, but he had a stroke/heart attack aged 34".
Being fit means you have a better chance of living longer and healthier. It is not a written GUARANTEE you will live longer!! Is it that hard to comprehend???
I agree. I just think the smug approach of the OP is slightly worrying. How many times do we have to hear it??? "I had a mate/dad/brother who was a triathlon runner, non-smoker, non-drinker, fittest guy I knew, but he had a stroke/heart attack aged 34".
Being fit means you have a better chance of living longer and healthier. It is not a written GUARANTEE you will live longer!! Is it that hard to comprehend???
If you think exercise is not good for you, you need to cite some evidence for it, and particularly numerous/good evidence given the 650,000 people involved in these findings.
I've seen nothing but positives from exercise in so many people. I have enough of this thing called "reality" on my side to be 10 times more smug about it than I apparently am.
Eh?
I'm not disagreeing with the OP. I do think it's of importance to lead a healthy lifestyle(as I said) but the condescending manner of your posts suggest you think that if you are physically fit then you will live longer than you would if you had lead an unhealthy life.
You might. You might not however.
I wouldn't go expecting to live a full and happy life until the age of 90 purely on the benefits of regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle.
Life is unpredictable and whilst being fit will stand you in good stead for later life it's no guarantee of you actually seeing later life.
So, I agree with you;)
I'm not disagreeing with the OP. I do think it's of importance to lead a healthy lifestyle(as I said) but the condescending manner of your posts suggest you think that if you are physically fit then you will live longer than you would if you had lead an unhealthy life.
You might. You might not however.
I wouldn't go expecting to live a full and happy life until the age of 90 purely on the benefits of regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle.
Life is unpredictable and whilst being fit will stand you in good stead for later life it's no guarantee of you actually seeing later life.
So, I agree with you;)
TameRacingDriver said:
Although only 33, my lifestyle has been such that I am expecting a hideous disease sometime in the not too distant future.
Never too late, I started running when I was 34 and nearly 15 stone. 14 months later, i'm 12st 2lbs and taking part in my first half marathon on the 18th November...If you looked up 'lazy' in the dictionary, you'd see a picture of me, anyone can do it.Interesting (though nothing new) that the research talks about the benefits of relatively modest amounts of light exercise, and mentions that the benefits apply to people whether normal weight, overweight, or obese.
In other words, it isn't saying you need to get a personal trainer, become a gym bunny and agonise about your body fat %, it's saying you should walk to the paper shop each morning, park at the far end of the car park, etc, and that even if you are still fat you will benefit.
In other words, it isn't saying you need to get a personal trainer, become a gym bunny and agonise about your body fat %, it's saying you should walk to the paper shop each morning, park at the far end of the car park, etc, and that even if you are still fat you will benefit.
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