Slow and steady wins the race:Jog slow to live long

If finding time to hit the gym is a distant dream for you, it is common to receive advices from many sources that running regularly can cover up for the lost time you did not dedicate to your gym. But wait a minute! You might have hit the jackpot by discovering a way to make up for missing the time at gym but, if you must pick the alternative you must do it right.

The Research Says...

According to the research, if you jog fast it can do more harm than good. To this, the researchers add that just an hour of slow running per week can increase your chances of living a longer life.

The researcher at the Frederiskberg Hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark, Peter Schnohr said "if your goal is to decrease risk of death and improve life expectancy, jogging a few times a week at a moderate pace is a good strategy. Anything more is not just unnecessary, it may be harmful".

Jogging for one to 2.4 hours in a week was found to be associated with the lowest mortality rates and the optimal frequency of jogging was less than three times per week.

What is in the Research  

In this research, 5,048 people participated who were studies by the researchers in the Copenhagen City Heart Study. During the study these participants were questioned about their activity.

The researchers identified and studied 1,098 healthy joggers and 413 healthy but sedentary non-joggers for 12 years.

The Findings

The findings of the study showed that strenuous joggers were as likely to die as sedentary non-joggers but, light joggers had the lowest rates of death.
Schnohr said "it is important to emphasize that the pace of the slow joggers corresponds to vigorous exercise and strenuous jogging corresponds to very vigorous exercise".

He added "when performed for decades, this activity level could pose health risks, especially to the cardiovascular system".

Now that you know the secret, run your way for a longer life but, keep it slow.

Image courtesy: Getty Images

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