Exercising with weights at the gym three times weekly could potentially provide you with a physique resembling that of someone eight years younger, according to a study. Previously, weightlifting has been associated with enhanced bone and muscular health, yet this new study involving 4,800 participants indicates that those who lifted weights had a lower biological […]
Exercising with weights at the gym three times weekly could potentially provide you with a physique resembling that of someone eight years younger, according to a study.
Previously, weightlifting has been associated with enhanced bone and muscular health, yet this new study involving 4,800 participants indicates that those who lifted weights had a lower biological age.
The NHS advises that adults should engage in physical activity daily, aiming for either 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week.
The research specifically examined how weight training affects the body and assessed the length of “telomeres,” which are DNA segments located at the ends of chromosomes that function like an aglet on a shoelace, preventing genetic material from fraying and being damaged.
Prior studies have indicated that individuals with longer telomeres tend to have a higher life expectancy than those with shorter telomeres, and that telomeres diminish in length as one ages.
Examination of blood samples indicated that those who exercised regularly possessed the longest telomeres, and frequent workouts yielded additional benefits as well.
Each increment of 10 minutes spent on weight lifting weekly was correlated with a reduction in biological age by approximately five months, with advantages observed in both genders and across all age groups.
“In this national sample, an average of 90 minutes weekly of strength training correlated with 3.9 years less biological aging,” the researchers stated in their findings.
Larry Tucker, an exercise sciences professor at Brigham Young University (BYU) in the U.S., conducted the study and noted that while there’s a strong link shown, it doesn’t definitively prove that weightlifting leads to longer telomeres.
“A correlation does not imply causation. We cannot conclude that lifting weights resulted in a decrease in biological age,” he explained to The Telegraph.
“Various forms of strength training were included, and all exercise types seem to link to longer telomeres.”
Participants who engaged in weightlifting most frequently had telomeres with about 225 additional pieces of DNA compared to non-lifters.
“The results indicated that for every 10 minutes allocated to strength training weekly, telomeres were, on average, 6.7 base pairs longer,” the research reveals.
“Consequently, 90 minutes weekly of strength training predicted telomeres that were, on average, 60.3 base pairs longer.
“Since every year of chronological aging correlated with telomeres that were 15.47 base pairs shorter in this national sample, 90 minutes a week of strength training equated to, on average, a reduction of 3.9 years in biological age.
“This interpretation implies that an hour of strength training thrice weekly (a total of 180 minutes) was linked to 7.8 years less biological aging.”
Researchers suggest that weight training may be beneficial for health and longevity as it addresses obesity, counters muscle loss, enhances metabolism, and promotes cardiovascular wellness.
“By mitigating chronic disease impacts and metabolic risk factors, resistance training seems to decelerate the biological aging process and lessen cell senescence, as demonstrated by longer telomeres,” Prof. Tucker explains.
The research findings were published in the journal Biology.
