Fitness

Having trouble falling asleep? Turns out skimping on your daily sleep routine could cost you when it comes to your waistline. According to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, people with post traumatic stress disorder who didn't get enough sleep were more likely to exercise less. And when you don't get in enough exercise, you'll have a hard time staying in shape. "We found that sleep quality was more strongly associated with physical activity one…
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Want to reduce your risk of Alzheimer's disease? Turns out just exercising for one hour a week could reduce your risk by up to 50 percent. The new research, published in the health journal Lancet Neurology, reveals which lifestyle factors can either decrease or increase a person's dementia risk--and exercise is at the top of this list. "We were surprised that [we] were able to see a clear difference already after two years," says Dr. Miia Kivipelto, a researcher from…
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Want to live longer? Well if you're a woman, researchers now say there's a simple way to lengthen your longevity--and it won't cost you a penny. Professor Debra Anderson, who recently led a study on the effects of certain lifestyle habits on women, says that simply increasing a certain type of exercise helps women live longer. Now she recommends that all older women make exercise a habit. "Studies clearly show moderate to vigorous intensity activity can have mental and physical…
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So what's worse: Eating more or exercising less? A new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine reports that not getting enough exercise may be the reason behind America's obesity epidemic--not calories. Dr. Uri Ladabaum, who led the study, now says that people should focus more on exercise to keep their weight under control. "We wouldn't say that calories don't count, but the main takeaway is that we have to look very carefully at physical activity," says Ladabaum, who…
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When it comes to staying fit, most scientists admit that Americans just aren't staying active. Worse yet, most adults don't get enough exercise, increasing their risk of heart disease. Now, a new study shows something worse--that just staying sedentary for a couple of hours may increase the risk of heart disease. The research was conducted by cardiologist at the UT Southwestern Medical Center. "Previous studies have reported that sedentary behavior was associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular outcomes; however,…
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It's a fact: As we get older, we have a harder time remembering things. But is there a way to reverse the type of memory loss that occurs from old age? New research from Australia says there may be a way to slow it down--and luckily, it won't cost you a dime. Led by researcher Lawla Law, an occupational therapist at the James Cook University's School of Public Health in Queensland, Australia, they found that having at-risk patients do functional…
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It's a fact: Most Americans live a sedentary lifestyle. Yet doing so now could literally kill us, according to a new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Reviewing a total of 43 previous studies, researchers say that an additional two hours of sedentary behavior, regardless of actual physical activity, increased the risk of some cancers, including lung, colon, and endometrial cancer. As for the reasons why, researchers suspect those who are sedentary engage in other unhealthy…
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So what's the key to living longer: Losing weight or working out? As it turns out, new research published in the American Journal of Medicine says what matters most is how much muscle mass you have. The research was co-written by scientists Preethi Srikanthan, M.D., M.S. and Arun S. Karlamangla, M.D., Ph.D., who both serve as researchers for the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "Obesity (as defined by body mass index) has not been associated consistently with higher…
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For most people, maintaining an exercise routine isn't easy--but here's one reason why you should start. According to a new study published in the journal Cancer, researchers found that breast cancer survivors who exercised the most were 34 percent less likely to die as fast as those who didn't stay physically active. Unfortunately, researchers only found that 35 percent of the participants polled exercised enough according to national exercise guidelines--and this number increased to 40 percent for African American women.…
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Do you prefer staying up throughout the night instead of adopting a day schedule? Then chances are you could be a night owl--a trait also shared by the likes of Thomas Edison, Hunter S. Thompson, and Elvis Presley. However, now new research says that night owls have a harder time staying fit--a fact that could cause long term damage to their health. The research was reported this week at the SLEEP 2014 meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota. "We found that even…
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