A vital part of chronic disease prevention

Adults who do both aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercises are less likely to develop a raft of chronic diseases, researchers have found.

University of Queensland–led research followed more than 8,000 Brisbane adults over nine years, examining the association between aerobic physical activity, muscle-strengthening activities and the development of chronic conditions.

The research is published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.

Behavioral epidemiologist Dr. Gregore Mielke from UQ’s School of Public Health said muscle-strengthening activities appeared to provide significant health benefits beyond aerobic activity alone.

“People who consistently met the recommended guidelines for both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes and hypertension and may also have had a lower risk of heart disease and some cancers than those who met neither guideline,” Mielke said.

“Among those who did both types of exercise, we found they had a 23% reduction in cancer, a 24% reduction in hypertension and a 50% reduction in type 2 diabetes.”

Australian government guidelines recommend moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity for 30 minutes or more on most days, as well as muscle-strengthening activities on two or more days per week.

However, Mielke said public health messaging generally focused on aerobic activity.

“This research suggests public health initiatives should also place emphasis on encouraging adults to incorporate strength-based activities into their weekly routines to support healthy aging,” he said.

Study participants were ages 40–64 and completed five surveys between 2007 and 2016.

Lead author and Ph.D. candidate Anh Tung Pham said about half of the participants met the recommended level of aerobic physical activity, while only 24% met guidelines for both muscle-strengthening and aerobic physical activities.

About 30% of people met neither exercise guideline.

“The results are quite significant and highlight the need to promote both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities to middle-aged adults,” Pham said.

“This provides evidence to stress the value of this combined approach for chronic disease prevention.”

Data from Australia’s 2022 National Health Survey show approximately 60% of adults ages 45–64 have at least one chronic disease, and 30% have multiple chronic diseases.

Muscle-strengthening activities include lifting weights, using resistance bands or body-weight exercises such as sit-ups, push-ups, squats and lunges.

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Swati Mestri

Swati Mestri holds a bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked as a content editor since 2019. She has experience editing research documents across technology, health care, and materials science, and has a particular interest in technology and space.

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