Feature Channels: Exercise and Fitness

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Frequent activity breaks from sitting may improve fasting blood sugar (glucose) levels and stabilize daily fluctuations, according to new research. The study, the first of its length to explore the effects of activity breaks in “free-living” conditions, is published ahead of print in the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism. It was chosen as an APSselect article for August.

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A recently completed study shows that six hours of leisure-time physical activity per week at the age of 11 reduces the risk of being overweight at 14 years of age associated with heavy use of digital media.

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Findings from a new University of Kentucky College of Medicine and College of Health Sciences study add to growing evidence that resistance exercise has unique benefits for fat loss. The Department of Physiology and Center for Muscle Biology study published in the FASEB Journal found that resistance-like exercise regulates fat cell metabolism at a molecular level.

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The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics encourages parents and caregivers to guide teens on how to safely resume sports and properly fuel their bodies to continue growing and maturing.

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The COVID-19 pandemic may have increased older adults’ risk of falling and injuring themselves, due to changes in physical activity, conditioning and mobility, a new national poll suggests.

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While it is widely known that regular physical exercise decreases the risk of virtually all chronic illnesses, the mechanisms at play are not fully known.

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Small lifestyle changes really can make a big difference in improving vascular health in older adults with obesity, according to a study conducted by researchers at Wake Forest School of Medicine.

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The study assessed the impact of sitting time and physical activity on mental health during the pandemic, and found that the increase in time spent sitting down had an adverse effect on mental health and even outweighed the benefits of regular exercise.

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Given the increased interest in sports and exercise around the Olympics underway in Tokyo, events such as the Summer Games represent an unrealized opportunity to improve global health, finds a new paper from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

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It’s back to school time, when we have a ton of things to check off the list: new books and supplies, new clothes, enrolling our children in sports, activities and more. A sports physical can help ensure children and teens are prepared to participate in athletics.

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It’s no secret that people everywhere packed on pandemic pounds since February 2020. A Penn State Health dietitian offers three tips to lose the weight sanely and permanently.

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As children’s bodies grow, so do their nutritional needs. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics encourages parents and caregivers to help children establish healthful habits that can last a lifetime. In August, the Academy and its Foundation celebrate Kids Eat Right Month™.

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A recent study by University of Delaware researchers suggests exercise can boost kids’ vocabulary growth. The article, published in the Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, details one of the first studies on the effect of exercise on vocabulary learning in children.

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A recent study led by Geoff Burns, an elite runner and postdoctoral researcher at the University of Michigan Exercise & Sport Science Initiative, compared the "bouncing behavior"—the underlying spring-like physics of running—in elite-level male runners (sub-four-minute milers) vs. highly trained but not elite runners.

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Declining health and fitness are commonly known to accompany spinal cord injuries and disorders (SCI/D). During the past few decades, attention has also focused on including five critical health hazards: overweight/obesity, insulin resistance, hypertension, and lipid abnormalities.

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New evidence supports integrating strategies to promote increased physical activity as a key part of the action plan for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, finds a new study led by researchers at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

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We take time to see our primary care physicians and dentists regularly to ensure the best possible health outcomes. One vital part of our physical wellbeing often overlooked is the health of our musculoskeletal system. Add a physical therapist to your list as you make your annual healthcare visits.

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Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise. HSS expert offers tips to get the most out of the sport, avoid injury and stay safe both in the pool and in open water.

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CSM and the Anthem Foundation release the 2021 American Fitness Index, ranking America’s 100 largest cities on health behaviors, chronic disease and community infrastructure indicators. Arlington, Va. earned the title of “America’s Fittest City.” Minneapolis, Minnesota; Seattle, Washington; Denver, Colorado; Madison, Wisconsin; Washington, D.C.; St. Paul, Minnesota; Irvine, California; Portland, Oregon; and Atlanta, Georgia; round out the top 10 fittest cities.

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Now a Cornell Trustee, Ririe and his wife, Shelley, have generously provided a lead gift of $3.5 million for the Athletic and Wellness Facilities Project. The project is a $19.5 million expansion and renovation of the Small Sport Center.

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The stay-at-home orders during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 led to a decrease in children’s physical activity and an increase in screen time, finds two new studies from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

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Daily step counts increased by approximately 1,200 among veterans who were given goals and participated in game-like interventions with loss-framed cash rewards

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Of the Swedish men in their late teens who performed well in the physical fitness tests for military conscription, a relatively high proportion were able to avoid hospital care when they became infected with COVID-19 during the pandemic up to 50 years later.

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A new study published in Brain Sciences today, shows patients with mild-to-moderate Parkinson's disease (PD) can slow the progress of the disease by participating in dance training with music for one-and-a-quarter hours per week.

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When visiting a health care provider, most people expect to have their body temperature, pulse, weight and blood pressure measured. Some Penn State Health patients can also anticipate questions about how much they exercise. The health system is one of six in the United States and the only one in Pennsylvania to incorporate physical activity as a vital sign.

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George Kelley, a professor in West Virginia University's School of Public Health, said he believes the key now is to push forward from the pandemic and into healthier lifestyles.

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New research suggests one year of moderate-to-vigorous intensity aerobic exercise training improved cardiorespiratory fitness, cerebral blood flow regulation, memory and executive function in people with mild cognitive impairment. The data suggest improvement in cerebrovascular function from exercise training also has the potential to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in older adults.

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Over the past 20 years, many studies have investigated the effects of acute aerobic exercise on cognitive performance.

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Working out just five minutes daily via a practice described as "strength training for your breathing muscles" lowers blood pressure and improves some measures of vascular health as well as, or even more than, aerobic exercise or medication, new CU Boulder research shows.

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A study is the first to examine the relationship between grit and a muscular endurance performance task – specifically, the grueling back squat. The expectation was that a “gritty” person would perform more repetitions in a resistance training set. Interestingly, grit did not predict muscular endurance during the back squat in well-trained men and women. Both males and females independently failed to show a relationship between grit and repetitions performed.

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For more than a decade, the evidence-based ACSM / Anthem American Fitness Index has recognized the critical role physical activity and city infrastructure play in a city’s overall health and fitness. ACSM and the Anthem Foundation will release the 2021 Fitness Index rankings at 7 a.m. EDT on July 13.

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New research finds elite athletes have temporary mitochondrial impairment after intense workouts, suggesting they may need to be mindful about overtraining. The study is published ahead of print in the Journal of Applied Physiology.

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Mental distress tends to be lower in the summer when compared to the fall, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.

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It’s been named the world’s best diet for weight loss, but now researchers at the University of South Australia are confident that the Mediterranean Diet – combined with a daily bout of exercise – can also stave off dementia, slowing the decline in brain function that is commonly associated with older age.

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A new sports program is kicking goals for men’s health as researchers from the University of South Australia set their sights on improving physical and mental wellbeing of Australian men.

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A research group including Professor MATSUDA Tetsuya of Tamagawa University's Brain Science Institute (Machida City, Tokyo; Director: SAKAGAMI Masamichi) and Assistant Professor ISHIHARA Toru from Kobe University's Graduate School of Human Development and Environment has illuminated the changes in the brain's neural network and cortex structure that underlie the positive association between childhood exercise and the maintenance and promotion of cognitive function in later life.

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Until now, systemic biomarkers to measure exercise effects on brain function and that link to relevant metabolic responses were lacking. A study shows a memory biomarker, myokine Cathepsin B (CTSB), increased in older adults following a 26-week structured aerobic exercise training. The positive association between CTSB and cognition, and the substantial modulation of lipid metabolites implicated in dementia, support the beneficial effects of exercise training on brain function and brain health in asymptomatic individuals at risk for Alzheimer’s.

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A study by RCSI indicates that exercise is probably the most effective short-term treatment for depression in people with coronary heart disease, when compared to antidepressants and psychotherapy or more complex care.

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Men who suffer sensory loss, particularly hearing loss, are more likely to be physically inactive and obese than women, according to a new study published in the European Journal of Public Health.

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ACSM's comprehensive sports medicine and exercise science conference takes place virtually from June 1 to 5 with programming covering the science, practice, public health and policy aspects of sports medicine, exercise science and physical activity. View program highlights.

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ACSM's comprehensive sports medicine and exercise science conference takes place virtually from June 1 to 5 with programming covering the science, practice, public health and policy aspects of sports medicine, exercise science and physical activity. View program highlights.

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The ACSM Publications Committee established an annual Paper of the Year Award in 2020 to recognize one scientific article from each of ACSM's five journals. Award-winning articles are selected based on impact, research significance, conceptual design and/or technical innovation.

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Iva Obrusnikova, an associate professor in the Department of Behavioral Health and Nutrition, has been selected as a Fellow with the International Federation of Adapted Physical Activity (IFAPA). The IFAPA Fellows Recognition Program recognizes and promotes outstanding accomplishments in scholarship and service by IFAPA members.

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ACSM's comprehensive sports medicine and exercise science conference takes place virtually from June 1 to 5 with programming covering the science, practice, public health and policy aspects of sports medicine, exercise science and physical activity.

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A new study published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine finds critical links between job loss and physical inactivity in young adults during the U.S. Great Recession of 2008-09 that can be crucial to understanding the role of adverse economic shocks on physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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A "prescription" to sit less and move more is the optimal first treatment choice for reducing mild to moderately elevated blood pressure and blood cholesterol in otherwise healthy adults, according to the new American Heart Association scientific statement published today in the American Heart Association's journal Hypertension.