Exercise

Aka: Exercise, Physical Activity, Exercise Prescription, Physical Activity Counseling

1. See Also
   1. Strength Training
   2. Exercise Energy Expenditure
   3. Exercise in Diabetes Mellitus
   4. Exercise in the Elderly
   5. Exercise in Pregnancy
   6. Exercise Participation in Hypertensive Patients
   7. Exercising with Infection
   8. Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm
   9. Exercise-Induced Urticaria
   10. Exercise in Osteoporosis
   11. Exercise in COPD
   12. Exercise in Obesity
   13. Exercise in Arthritis
   14. Exercise in Chronic Pain
2. Epidemiology
   1. Majority of United States is physically inactive
      1. American adults
         1. Completely sedentary: 25%
         2. Activity <30 minutes/day: 60%
      2. Americans age 12 to 21
         1. No recent Exercise: 14%
         2. Not vigorously active: 50%
      3. Americans over age 65 years
         1. Sedentary: 75%
   2. References
      1. (1996) USDHHS Surgeon General Report on Activity
      2. Jones (1998) Arch Fam Med 7:285-9
3. Efficacy: Benefits of Aerobic Exercise
   1. Reduces Cardiovascular Risks
      1. Coronary Artery Disease twice as likely in sedentary
      2. Improves Lipid profile
         1. Increases High Density Lipoprotein (HDL)
         2. Decreases Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL)
         3. Decreases Total Cholesterol
         4. Decreases Triglycerides
         5. Improves VLDL Cholesterol
      3. Enhances Fibrinolysis and alters platelet function
      4. Lowers Blood Pressure
         1. Decreases Systolic Blood Pressure
         2. Decreases Diastolic Blood Pressure
      5. Significantly lowers mortality in older men with CHD
         1. Required only light activity (walking, gardening)
         2. Wannamethee (2000) Circulation 102:1358-63
   2. Benefits Diabetes Mellitus
      1. See Exercise in Diabetes Mellitus
      2. Improves Glucose Tolerance and Insulin Sensitivity
         1. Improves for 16 hours after each Exercise session
   3. Reduces Mortality in Postmenopausal Women
      1. Studied 42,000 women ages 55 to 69 years over 7 years
         1. Moderate Physical Activity (golf or long walks)
            1. Exercise once weekly: Mortality reduced 23%
            2. Exercise 2-4 times weekly: Mortality reduced 30%
            3. Exercise >4 times weekly: Mortality reduced 38%
         2. Vigorous Physical Activity: Mortality Reduced 43%
      2. References
         1. Kushi (1997) JAMA 277:1287-92
   4. Reduces Cancer risk
      1. Colon Cancer and Prostate Cancer reduced
      2. Breast Cancer risk reduced
         1. Study 25,624 Norwegian women ages 35-49 in 14 years
         2. Breast Cancer reduced 37% if 5-7 days Exercise/week
         3. Thune (1997) 336:1269-75
   5. Osteoporosis benefits
      1. Decreases postmenopausal Bone Mineral Density loss
      2. Decreases hip and Vertebral FractureIncidence
   6. Other Benefits
      1. Reduces Obesity
      2. Improves immune function
      3. Improves Anxiety and Major Depression
      4. Improves Insomnia
      5. Improves self-esteem and socialization
      6. Improves cognitive function and Short Term Memory
      7. Improves Chronic Pain
      8. Improves Myofascial Pain
         1. Fibromyalgia
         2. Myofascial Pain Syndrome
4. Type: Low to moderate level aerobic activity
   1. Frequency: Daily
   2. Duration: 30 minutes or more of cumulative activity
      1. May split into three ten minute activities daily
   3. Mild to moderate intensity
      1. Metabolic Energy Equivalents: 3-6 mets
      2. Heart Rate <55% of maximum Heart Rate
      3. Borg rating of exertion <11
      4. Caloric expenditure: 150 to 500 kcals per day
   4. Examples
      1. See Walking Program
      2. See practical tips below
      3. Walk the dog
      4. Yard work (use a push mower instead of a riding mower)
      5. Golf without a cart
      6. Three ten minute fast walks per day
      7. Walk instead of ride
      8. Park car at a distance from mall or office
      9. Take stairs instead of elevator: Up and Down
      10. Coordinate activities with family and children
          1. Family biking
          2. Soccer with kids
          3. Swim as a family
5. Type: Moderate to vigorous aerobic activity
   1. Frequency: 3-5 times per week
   2. Duration: >20-30 minutes moderate intensity
   3. Goal Heart Rate: 60-80% of maximum Heart Rate
   4. Examples
      1. Biking (faster than 12 MPH)
      2. Hiking
      3. Dance
      4. Inline Skating
      5. Eliptical trainer
      6. Tennis
      7. Cross Country Skiing
      8. Soccer
      9. Running or Jogging
      10. Swimming or water aerobics
      11. Brisk walking for 60 minutes per day
6. Management: Toning and Stretching
   1. Frequency: 1-3 times per week
   2. Stretching
      1. Yoga
      2. Tai Chi
   3. Toning
      1. Weight lifting
      2. Tension bands
7. Management: Exercise Prescription
   1. Type of Exercise
      1. Choose sustainable activities
         1. Many will not keep up a structured program at the gym
         2. Social activities (e.g. walk with friends or family) or chores are more often maintained
         3. Tie Exercise to rewards (e.g. watching a movie on the treadmill)
         4. Mix-up activities (cross train) by alternating different Exercises (e.g. Swimming, Running)
      2. Take underlying comorbidity into account
         1. Examples: Arthritis or Peripheral Vascular Disease
         2. Avoid high intensity sport that injure Shoulder, knee
   2. Amount: Duration and Frequency are more important than intensity
      1. Duration: >30 minutes/day
         1. Can be divided into 2-3 ten-minute activities/day
         2. While starting, commit to sustainable duration (e.g. 5 minutes everyday without fail)
            1. Advance by sustainable increase each week (e.g. 1-2 minutes/day added each week)
      2. Frequency
         1. Low to Moderate Aerobic Activity: "Move daily"
         2. Moderate to vigorous aerobic activity: 5 times per week
            1. Avoid burn-out by taking 1-2 days off per week
   3. Intensity
      1. Start with low to Moderate Aerobic Activity (e.g. fast walking, yard work)
         1. See Practical tips below
         2. Start at 55% of maximum Heart Rate and slowly increase over months
      2. Increase frequency and duration before intensity
         1. Do not increase intensity more than 10% per week
         2. Consider more vigorous aerobic activities later (e.g. biking, Inline Skating)
   4. Example of an optimal program to build towards
      1. Low to Moderate Aerobic Activity daily for a cummulative total of 30 minutes/day and
      2. Moderate to vigorous aerobic activity 3-5 days weekly for >20 minutes/day and
      3. Toning and Stretching 1-3 times per week
8. Management: Practical Tips
   1. Exercise while reading or watching Television
      1. Americans watch television average of 30 hours/week
      2. Hide the remote control
      3. Rent movies and watch them only when exercising
   2. Treadmill most effective indoor Exercise (n=13)
      1. Highest energy use at maximal exertion
      2. Compared 6 types of Exercise equipment
         1. Treadmill
         2. StairMaster
         3. Rower
         4. Exercise bike
         5. Nordic track
         6. Air-Dyne (bike with rower)
      3. References
         1. Zeni (1996) JAMA 275:1424-7
9. Prevention: Sports related injury
   1. Stretching does not reduce injuries in healthy athletes
      1. Herbert (2002) BMJ 325:468-70
   2. Warm-ups reduce injury rate by 50%
      1. Study of 1800 teen athletes in organized sports
      2. Sample program
         1. Jogging
         2. Specific movements (e.g. Cutting, jumping)
         3. Balance (e.g. wobble boards)
         4. Strength Exercises (e.g. hamstring, quadriceps)
      3. References
         1. Olsen (2005) BMJ 330:449-52
10. Resources
    1. Anderson (2003) Stretching
       1. Paid link to Amazon.com (ISBN 0936070226)
    2. Anderson (2002) Getting in Shape
       1. Paid link to Amazon.com (ISBN 0936070307)
11. References
    1. Eriksson (1999) Sports Med 27(6):381-91
    2. Pescatello (2001) West J Med 174:114-8
    3. Ross (2000) Ann Intern Med 133:92-103