Here’s another reason to get used to exercise again if you’ve tackled Quarantine 15.
An observational study among nearly 50,000 adults found that those who met the recommended 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week were less likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID-19 compared to more sedentary people who almost never sweated.
The Kaiser Permanent Study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine on Tuesday, used the anonymous records of 48,440 adult Californians who used the Kaiser health care system in the two years before the 2020 pandemic. And what is striking about Kaiser’s data is that since 2009, it has asked patients to record their exercise habits as an important sign so that researchers could group men and women according to their self-reported physical activity. The least active group said they exercised 10 minutes or less a week, and the most active group reported hitting the recommended 150 minutes or more of aerobic activity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services each week. has.
Researchers analyzed the data to see if there was any relationship between how many people exercised regularly, and whether COVID-19 was diagnosed in them last year, as well as the severity of their illness. And they found that adults who were constantly inactive exercised less than 10 minutes a week were at greater risk for hospitalization, admission to the ICU, and death from COVID-19 than those who consistently adhered to the guidelines for meet physical activity. . Specifically, the group that was least active was almost twice as hospitalized as the most active group. And the least active group was about two-and-a-half times more likely to die from COVID-19 than the most active group.
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“Adherence to the physical activity guidelines is strongly associated with a reduced risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes among infected adults.”
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Even the patients who did not reach the mark of 150 minutes per week (exercised between 11 and 149 minutes per week), performed better than those who almost never exercised, although their outcomes were still not as good as the more not. active adults receive 150 minutes or more of physical activity weekly.
The researchers also looked at the underlying health conditions and risk factors of the subjects, such as their age, their weight and whether they smoked. And they found that, in addition to advanced age and a history of organ transplantation, physical inactivity was the strongest risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes among the nearly 50,000 patients.
Some examples of this study include the fact that patients themselves reported how much they exercised, as well as how powerful their workouts were. And as an observational study, it is not so proof that people who exercise less will have worse COVID-19 than those who are more active. However, it does find a correlation between regular exercise and better health outcomes, which has also been observed for multiple chronic diseases, including those such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, associated with severe COVID-19. For example, taking 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a day, such as cycling, can reduce your risk of cancer by 31%, according to a study published last summer in JAMA Oncology.
“Consistent adherence to physical activity guidelines has been strongly associated with a reduced risk of serious COVID-19 outcomes among infected adults,” the researchers concluded in the new Kaiser study, recommending that public health agencies make efforts to promote physical activity, prioritize as the pandemic continues.
But the researchers also acknowledged that during the pandemic, it became even more difficult to stay active beforehand, as people had been asked to stay home in recent years, and many gyms and wellness centers were forced to close to spread the coronavirus. In fact, more than two out of five adults surveyed (42%) revealed that they had gained more weight in the past twelve months than they intended, and according to a recent survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) among more than 29 pounds. 3,000 people. And one in ten said they had picked up more than 50 pounds.
Read more: “The Covid 15?” If it’s just that – that’s how much weight the average person gained during the pandemic
Related: Gymnasiums do help in Washington and say they ‘are part of our health and fitness infrastructure’.
Prior to the pandemic, sedentary jobs that put workers at computers all day or crouching had increased by 83% since 1950, according to the American Heart Association. Johns Hopkins reports that physically active work now accounts for less than 20% of the U.S. workforce, which decreased from about half of the jobs in 1960. The average office worker spends up to 15 hours a day on the job.
It can therefore be daunting to get two and a half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week, such as brisk walking or fast dancing. But it is doable.
It can help break down the 150 minutes into smaller blocks; it comes down to less than 22 minutes a day, or 30 minutes over five days, which can be broken up several times a day further into 10 minute bars. What’s more, health officials note that any amount of physical activity is better than none, so it’s good to start small and work your way up. Start by taking a quick ten-minute walk five times a week, perhaps during your lunch or after dinner, which will add up to 50 minutes of weekly activity. Once it becomes a normal habit, you can take the walk longer until you take 150 minutes a week. And the extra physical activity can have the added benefit of promoting your mental health if you feel burnt out over the past year.
Either you can park your car further when you do assignments, or the bus or subway stops earlier than you would normally do to push in extra steps. We have more tips for exercising and finding ways to eat healthier and manage your weight here.