Two of the Most Effective Ways to Combat the Aging Process
We’ve all heard the phrase that exercise is the best medicine. Specifically, it seems that regular high-intensity interval training (HIIT) is great for reversing the declining ability of our cells to generate energy.
HIIT involves short bursts of very intense activity, interspersed with recovery periods of lower-intensity aerobic exercise. To test HIIT, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, used two groups of people. One aged between 18 and 30 and the other between 65 and 80. The study assigned both groups to three months of interval training, weight training or a combination of the two. Muscle biopsies were taken before and afterward to measure the impact of these regimens on their cells.
Interval training boosted the ability of the mitochondria within cells to generate energy by 69 percent in older volunteers, and by 49 percent in the younger group.
Mitochondrial activity declines with age, which may contribute to fatigue and a reduction in the size and ability of muscles to burn excess blood sugar – a risk factor for diabetes. But this decline was halted and even reversed in the older interval-training group. The study, performed by Dr. S. Nair, showed “After three months of interval training, everything converged towards what we saw in young people.” Cell Metabolism, DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2017.02.009
The effects of HIIT and weight training on muscle mass
Nair says the greatest benefit from weight training was the addition of new muscle mass. The study showed that the addition of weight training to HIIT, in the older group, enhanced the mitochondrial and respiratory benefits when compared to the HIIT or weight training only groups.
Mitochondria play a role in the muscle aging process. Sarcopenia, or age-related muscle loss, contributes to strength decreases. As muscle is lost, people are more likely to fall, and if an older person breaks a bone and is bed-ridden for several weeks they lose further muscle and bone mass. This results in a cascade of effects that leads to bad outcomes for older populations. Muscle is the only place the body can store amino acids – the building blocks of proteins – so when someone with little muscle becomes ill they have few reserves to call on.
Healthy muscle tissue is also a major consumer of glucose. So, the lack of muscle means the body can’t cope well with the surge of blood glucose after meals. This slowly nudges people down the road to diabetes. People think of muscle as the body’s mover, but it’s really a huge metabolic organ. The mitochondrial function of lifelong exercisers is like that of someone half their age. One of the best anti-aging pills is to stay active.
Exercise may very well be the best medicine!
David and Melanie Riley, MS, CPT, CES, FNS
Co-Directors of Fitness, Country Club of the North
