Study Reveals that High Intensity Training is Best for the Elderly

Feb, 2021 - By SMI

The Generation 100 study has demonstrated that five years of high intensity training can improve fitness, increase quality of life and may extend the lives of the study participants.

Professor Dorthe Stensvold from the Cardiac Exercise Research Group, NTNU, Norway, said that for the elderly, exercise, in general, has good effects on health. In addition to this, the research has shown that high intensity training can provide extra benefits to the health of elderly participants. Prof. Stensvold also added that among the 1,500 participants in the study, more than 95% survived till the end of the study.

In 2012, when the Generation 100 study was started, 1,500 participants were randomly divided into three training groups. One group was assigned high intensity training, while the second group was instructed to train at a moderate intensity twice a weak. The participants were given a choice of training on their own or in a group with instructors. The third group was advised to workout according to the recommendations of Norwegian health authorities. They were not offered the organized training but were called in for regular health checkups.

Compared to the other groups, mental and physical quality of life of participants from the firsdt group was relatively better after five years. Stensvold added that the results of the study showed that exercise prolonged life. She also added that fitness helps in preventing health risks especially among the elderly. Individuals in their 70s normally experience a 20% drop in their fitness over a period of 10 years.

A high intensity training refers to a workout which causes participants to sweat excessively and cause them to run out of breath. Since the first group had the highest survival rate by the end of five years, the team is now hoping that the national recommendations for physical activity will soon be modified according to their findings.