According to Dr Dilip Gude, a consultant physician, losing body fat has musculoskeletal benefits such as a reduction in osteoarthritis and osteopenia. A new study suggests that moving more and more often' can help with long-term weight loss.
The study, which was published in the Obesity Journal, discovered that moving more rather than structured exercise can help people lose weight.
The study, titled 'Intervening on Exercise and Day-long Movement for Weight-loss Maintenance in Older Adults,' was published by Wake Forest University in North Carolina and followed 183 men and women aged 65 to 85 as they embarked on a six-month dietary weight loss and physical activity regimen, with check-ins every six months through an 18-month maintenance phase.
The participants in the study were classified as obese based on their BMI and were given the same dietary intervention but were divided into three groups for activity coaching:
- Weight loss combined with structured exercise, such as treadmill workouts.
- Weight loss combined with intervention, which encourages people to accumulate activity throughout the day by doing things they enjoy, such as walking the dog or gardening.
- *Weight loss, structured exercise, and intervention combined.
"A lot of the messaging is about exercise, exercise, exercise," Fanning explained. "I really want people to see that accumulating movement throughout the day has benefits – and sometimes even greater benefits – than focusing solely on structured exercise." Experts emphasize that avoiding sedentary lifestyles and focusing on physical activity can help reduce morbidity and mortality from heart, kidney, and other major organ disorders. "
A landmark study of over 200,000 Australian adults found that sitting for more than eight hours a day increased all-cause mortality, while sitting for less than four hours decreased it. This confirms the adage that "sitting is the new smoking." "The detrimental effects of smoking on the heart, kidney, brain, and other organs are comparable to what sitting for long periods of time during the day can do," said Dr Dilip Gude, a consultant physician.
According to Dr. Gude, losing body fat has musculoskeletal benefits such as a reduction in osteoarthritis and osteopenia. "Lowering one's body weight improves obstructive sleep apnea and cardiorespiratory reserve, alleviates gallbladder and pancreas disorders, acid peptic diseases, and so on." Obesity has been linked to cancers such as breast and endometrial cancers, and losing weight may provide protection against these diseases," Dr. Gude added.
