Seniors Who Exercise Help Their Health

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To examine the impact of exercise on insulin resistance and motor function, between 2002 and 2006, the authors focused on 117 sedentary Canadian men and women between the ages of 60 and 80, all of whom were diagnosed as obese in their abdominal region.

None of the participants had a prior history of heart disease, and none had been dieting when the study was launched. Almost all were white.

Over six-month study periods, the participants were put into one of four activity groups: those who did not exercise; those engaged in resistance exercise alone (20 minutes/three times per week); those performing aerobic exercise alone (30 minutes/five times per week); and those who did a combination of both resistance (60 minutes per week) and aerobic exercise (30 minutes/three times per week).

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While tracking dietary intake throughout the study period to maintain each participant's initial weight, the researchers assessed skeletal muscle mass and fat composition, as well as insulin resistance, at the beginning and end of the various exercise programs.

The researchers found that among the two groups engaged in aerobic exercise -- either alone or in combination with resistance training -- insulin resistance improved as compared with those who didn't exercise at all. Resistance training alone, however, did not produce any improvements.

The same dynamic held in terms of improvements in cardio-respiratory fitness, in which aerobic or combined aerobic-resistance training produced benefits, while resistance training alone did not.

However, any form of exercise, alone or in combination, appeared to significantly boost motor function among the participants -- although combining aerobic with resistance exercise provided the most benefit.

The authors concluded that older men and women have the most to gain by engaging in a routine exercise program that includes both aerobic and resistance training, while maintaining a healthy diet. And they encouraged health-care providers to advocate this kind of lifestyle to their elderly patients.

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