Pumping iron, pulling machine weights, and performing pushups build impressive muscles—but running, swimming, and dancing stoke the fires of healthy hearts.
A recent study that placed 406 overweight or obese people into various exercise groups showed that aerobics trump stationery resistance regimens for health and longevity. The best exercises to prevent cardiovascular disease are those involving movement, producing deeper breathing, and more rapid heartbeats.
Researchers at Iowa State University set out to discover which exercise regimen would be the most effective in preventing cardiovascular disease—resistance training, aerobic exercise, or a combination of resistance and aerobic activities.
Resistance training includes exercises that subject muscles to opposing force—from equipment or one’s own body weight. Aerobic exercises, meaning with oxygen, use the body’s large muscle groups, and are repetitive and often rhythmic....
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