Pushups extend life

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Lying lazily on the couch after work is bad for your health. At least two and a half hours of endurance sports and two strength training sessions per week are the order of the day - this is the official recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO). But while many can at least bring themselves to running, cycling or swimming, push-ups, sit-ups and the like often remain exercises that are avoided. Strength training in particular could protect against cancer, the second leading cause of death.

Fountain of youth sport?

Australian researchers led by Emmanuel Stamatakis from the Charles Perkins Center in Sydney have investigated the question of the possible fountain of youth sport. What has long been known: Endurance sports have a positive effect on life expectancy. The scientists now wanted to know what the combination with strength training or muscle building alone would bring.

To do this, the scientists evaluated data from more than 80,000 people. These specified exactly which sport they did for how long each week. The scientists then studied the impact of exercise on mortality. In their calculations, they took into account the age, gender, state of health and lifestyle of the test subjects.

Effect on different causes of death

The sweating paid off. Study participants who adhered to the WHO exercise guidelines and did both endurance sports and strength training reduced their risk of death by 29 percent. Each training area, on the other hand, only resulted in a 16 to 18 percent lower likelihood of death.

The surprising thing: endurance and strength training had an effect on different causes of death. While jogging, cycling and the like reduced the risk of dying of cardiovascular disease, muscle building did not bring any measurable benefit in relation to the blood vessels.

Muscle training keeps cancer at bay

Weight training, on the other hand, had an impact on cancer mortality. Those who regularly tried to do push-ups or the gym were one-third less likely to die of cancer. The researchers were unable to establish a connection between endurance sports and cancer mortality rates.

"Strength training such as push-ups are as important as endurance sports, such as running or cycling," says study leader Stamatakis to It doesn't matter whether you work with your own body weight or use equipment in the gym.

Immune booster?

The researchers do not yet know exactly what is really behind the cancer-protective effect of muscle training. They suspect that the immune system may be involved. Because this is activated by the muscle stimulation.

“Strength training also changes the release of certain signaling molecules, the adipokines,” says Stamatakis. “These influence the inflammatory processes in the body, which are important in the development of cancer.” Push-ups and the like also reduced the production of sex hormones, which also promote certain forms of cancer, such as breast cancer.

In the beginning, five minutes are enough

How long you have to train your muscles in order to achieve a positive effect on your health depends on the level of training. The study participants completed 5 to 60 minutes per week. “Anyone who has never done strength training should start with two to three units a week. Then do three to four exercises at a time of five to fifteen repetitions, ”advises Stamatakis.

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