High-intensity Training versus Traditional Exercise Interventions for Promoting Health

This study shows that if you want to lose weight or lower your cholesterol, then you have to stick to a long-term exercise or strength training program. But if your goal is just cardio-respiratory fitness and glucose tolerance, then short-term intense interval training can help you to achieve that goal.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of brief intense interval training as exercise intervention for promoting health and to evaluate potential benefits about common interventions, that is, prolonged exercise and strength training.

Methods: Thirty-six untrained men were divided into groups that completed 12 wk of intense interval running (INT; total training time 40 min·wk−1), prolonged running (~150 min·wk−1), and strength training (~150 min·wk−1) or continued their habitual lifestyle without participation in physical training.

Results: The improvement in cardio-respiratory fitness was superior in the INT (14% ± 2% increase in VO2max) compared with the other two exercise interventions (7% ± 2% and 3% ± 2% increases). The blood glucose concentration 2 h after oral ingestion of 75 g of glucose was lowered to a similar extent after training in the INT (from 6.1 ± 0.6 to 5.1 ± 0.4 mM, P < 0.05) and the prolonged running group (from 5.6 ± 1.5 to 4.9 ± 1.1 mM, P < 0.05). In contrast, INT was less efficient than prolonged running for lowering the subjects' resting HR, fat percentage, and reducing the ratio between total and HDL plasma cholesterol. Furthermore, total bone mass and lean body mass remained unchanged in the INT group, whereas both these parameters were increased by the strength-training intervention.

Conclusions: INT for 12 wk is an effective training stimulus for improvement of cardio-respiratory fitness and glucose tolerance, but in relation to the treatment of hyperlipidemia and obesity, it is less effective than prolonged training. Furthermore and in contrast to strength training, 12 wk of INT had no impact on muscle mass or indices of skeletal health.

Source: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/729632

David P. Chen, D.C.
Chiropractor in Laurel, Maryland 20708

Exercise at work to prevent low back pain

More jobs now require prolonged sitting which has been associated with loss of the lumbar lordosis, intervertebral disc (IVD) compression, and height loss, possibly increasing the risk of lower back pain. There are numerous studies suggest that exercise can play an important role in preventing occupational and non-occupational low back pain. An innovative approach was published in the April issue of The Spine Journal that used an office chair exercise that is performed while seated. The exercise provides a brief decompression of the lumbar spine by moving forward on the chair seat, placing the hands on the seat of the chair, pressing downward with the arms to take pressure off the lumbar spine, and arching the back and shoulders backward at the same time. This decompression maneuver held for 5 seconds followed by 3 seconds of reloading (sitting normally) and was repeated 4 times. Sequential MRI demonstrated a marked increase in vertical height of the lumbar spine using this decompression strategy. The authors concluded that “Seated upright MRI and stadiometry, as performed in this study, appear to be feasible methods for detecting compressive and decompressive spinal changes associated with normal sitting and, alternately, seated unloading exercises. Larger studies are encouraged to determine normative values of our study measurements and to determine if morphological changes induced by seated unloading predict treatment response and/or reductions in the incidence of sitting-related LBP.”

There are numerous quality evidence that post-treatment exercise programs can prevent recurrences of back pain. There have been many studies published this past decade that support the value of exercise in primary, secondary as well as tertiary prevention of low back pain. These studies have been conducted with multiple age groups and multiple settings including sports venues and the workplace.

Source:
http://www.chiroaccess.com/Articles/Exercise-and-the-Prevention-of-Low-Back-Pain.aspx?id=0000162

Dr. David P. Chen
Chiropractor in Laurel, MD
Laurel Regional Chiropractic