1 00:00:09,039 --> 00:00:13,040 Speaker 1: Hey, everybody, welcome to another edition of Wisdom Wednesdays. For 2 00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:15,920 Speaker 1: the last couple of weeks, I've talked about the impact 3 00:00:15,920 --> 00:00:21,480 Speaker 1: of cardiovascular exercise on our overall health and longevity, and 4 00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:24,040 Speaker 1: this week I want to talk about why it is 5 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: really critical that we also do strength training or resistance training. 6 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:32,559 Speaker 1: And what we find is that when you look at 7 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 1: the data I'm talking particularly from Australia here, we know 8 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:43,279 Speaker 1: that adherence to the recommended guidelines around general exercise are 9 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,840 Speaker 1: not horrendous. Kind of eighteen to twenty four year olds 10 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,760 Speaker 1: about eighty percent to one hundred and fifty minutes a 11 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:52,760 Speaker 1: week or more, and when you get the forty five 12 00:00:52,840 --> 00:00:56,160 Speaker 1: or fifty to fifty four, it's still above seventy percent 13 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:59,000 Speaker 1: and just trails off a little bit below seventy percent 14 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:01,120 Speaker 1: when you get to the fififty five to sixty four 15 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 1: year olds. But when it comes to doing strength training 16 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:06,959 Speaker 1: on two or more days of the week, which is 17 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:10,760 Speaker 1: part of the guidelines, only about thirty five percent of 18 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:13,360 Speaker 1: eighteen to twenty four year olds do it, and it 19 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:17,080 Speaker 1: drops right off continuously to the point where it's forty 20 00:01:17,080 --> 00:01:20,479 Speaker 1: five to fifty four year olds and fifty five and over, 21 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: you only get twenty percent doing those muscle strengthening activities. 22 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:32,440 Speaker 1: So why is muscle strength really important independently of cardiovascar exercise. Well, 23 00:01:32,920 --> 00:01:34,479 Speaker 1: to look at that, let's let's look at the two 24 00:01:34,480 --> 00:01:39,000 Speaker 1: biggest killers in most developed nations there are cardiovascular disease 25 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:43,240 Speaker 1: and dementia. And we know I've talked about how aerobic 26 00:01:43,360 --> 00:01:49,120 Speaker 1: exercise or cardiovascular exercise is really good for the heart. Obviously, 27 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 1: you know it helps to improve our cardiovascular efficiency at 28 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:58,600 Speaker 1: lower's blood pressure. It actually improves your lipid profile, but 29 00:01:58,720 --> 00:02:05,520 Speaker 1: it also has impacts upon the heart through improved endothelial function. 30 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:09,000 Speaker 1: It reduces the stiffness of our arteries and the chambers 31 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:14,000 Speaker 1: of our heart, and it enhances our efficiency. But resistance training, 32 00:02:14,120 --> 00:02:19,800 Speaker 1: on the other hand, that actually, while it builds muscle, 33 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:23,400 Speaker 1: and everybody gets that it builds muscle, it is also 34 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:28,760 Speaker 1: got some significant cardio metabolic benefits and one of those 35 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:33,560 Speaker 1: biggest things is around improving insulin sensitivity, reducing a risk 36 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 1: of type two diabetes and dementia. But also it has 37 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,800 Speaker 1: a positive impact on blood pressure. Again, resistance training can 38 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: improve your lipid profiles as well, similarly to aerobic exercise, 39 00:02:45,960 --> 00:02:50,440 Speaker 1: and it also increases our lean mass obviously and our 40 00:02:50,520 --> 00:02:55,040 Speaker 1: base of metabolic rate, which are important in the overall 41 00:02:55,120 --> 00:02:57,760 Speaker 1: management of disease. But when it comes to the heart, 42 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:04,400 Speaker 1: it also increases iocardial thickness without affecting the chamber size. 43 00:03:04,520 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 1: So it's actually making the heart stronger in a way 44 00:03:09,919 --> 00:03:14,760 Speaker 1: that is different to aerobic exercise. And then that actually, 45 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,639 Speaker 1: if you think of that chamber is stronger, it enhances 46 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 1: your vascular function and reduces the workload on the heart 47 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:24,760 Speaker 1: by actually then reducing the blood pressure. So we know 48 00:03:24,880 --> 00:03:28,640 Speaker 1: that combining the two of them are best for the heart. 49 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:33,520 Speaker 1: And we know that particularly grip strength and muscle mass 50 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:38,640 Speaker 1: have a very protective effect on dementia. We know that 51 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: it is predictive. Your grip strength in your fifties and 52 00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:44,440 Speaker 1: sixties is actually highly predictive of whether you're going to 53 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: get dementia. And it's not because strong forearms prevent dementia. 54 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: It's because that grip strength is a proxy for overall 55 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:57,080 Speaker 1: muscle mass, and your muscle is the biggest sink for 56 00:03:57,200 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: glucox you know, it hoovers up those glucose and it 57 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:06,920 Speaker 1: actually preserves our insulin sensitivity, which is really really important. 58 00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 1: And we know that dementia is actually a major public 59 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,359 Speaker 1: health priority globally. It is now the biggest killer of 60 00:04:16,560 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 1: females in Australia and in many other developed nations. So 61 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:26,400 Speaker 1: cardiovasculities and dementia are one and two. And when it 62 00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:30,159 Speaker 1: comes to particularly resistance training, let's just talk about socarcopenia. 63 00:04:30,680 --> 00:04:35,599 Speaker 1: So that is a condition that has progressive generalized loss 64 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:39,839 Speaker 1: of muscle mass and function as we age, and studies 65 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 1: show that it affects about fifteen percent of adults that 66 00:04:44,279 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: are sixty five years and over, and then it accelerates 67 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 1: massively and is very prevalent in those over seventy five. 68 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: And it's not uncommon for the time that people read 69 00:04:56,400 --> 00:04:58,800 Speaker 1: seventy five or really that they would have lost up 70 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:03,280 Speaker 1: to half of their muscle mass. And that is highly 71 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:09,719 Speaker 1: associated with cognitive decline. Right, And it's because, as I said, 72 00:05:09,839 --> 00:05:14,719 Speaker 1: that muscle is a sink. But there are other things 73 00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:17,120 Speaker 1: that we don't understand. Sorry, but when I said, I 74 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:19,480 Speaker 1: think I mean a sink for glucose. But there's all 75 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:22,880 Speaker 1: other things that are really important. I have talked before 76 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:27,680 Speaker 1: about myokinds, and I call them magical myokinds. These are 77 00:05:27,839 --> 00:05:32,160 Speaker 1: molecules that are produced in your contracting muscle which actually 78 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:36,600 Speaker 1: get outside of your muscles and have what we call 79 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:42,320 Speaker 1: pleotrophic effects that means widespread effects throughout your body and 80 00:05:42,360 --> 00:05:45,720 Speaker 1: your brain. We know they play a significant role in 81 00:05:45,839 --> 00:05:52,280 Speaker 1: many organ's physiology and regulation, including our brain tissue. And 82 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:55,440 Speaker 1: we know that that loss of muscle mass and function 83 00:05:56,040 --> 00:06:00,040 Speaker 1: are also associated with higher levels of inflammatory markers and 84 00:06:00,160 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 1: oxidative stress, and also vascular issues. So when we have 85 00:06:06,560 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: more muscle and we are using that muscle, we're contracting it, 86 00:06:10,640 --> 00:06:15,040 Speaker 1: we are actually producing the world's best medicine. Every single day. 87 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:18,400 Speaker 1: Exercise has been shown to prevent and or treat twenty 88 00:06:18,400 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: six of the most common chronic diseases, and most of 89 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:25,600 Speaker 1: that are a lot of it is through the impact 90 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:29,080 Speaker 1: of these myokinds. So we get the benefits from our 91 00:06:29,120 --> 00:06:33,360 Speaker 1: cardiovascular system of exercise in general, and particularly cardiovascular exercise, 92 00:06:33,800 --> 00:06:39,040 Speaker 1: But then these muscle miokinds have widespread effects throughout our 93 00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:41,440 Speaker 1: body and brain, improving the health of your immune system, 94 00:06:41,480 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: your gastrointestinal system, your stress response system, remodeling bone and 95 00:06:46,279 --> 00:06:50,160 Speaker 1: muscle throughout your life. But they have amazing effects on 96 00:06:50,200 --> 00:06:53,599 Speaker 1: our brain function as well. And then the other thing 97 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:57,080 Speaker 1: is we think about it as you lose muscle, and 98 00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:00,680 Speaker 1: particularly as we age, we lose our fat fast twitch 99 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:05,560 Speaker 1: muscle fibers, the ones that are to do with contracting quickly. 100 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:09,400 Speaker 1: They are the muscle fibers that help you to recover 101 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:12,880 Speaker 1: your feet or reach out and grab something whenever you've tripped. 102 00:07:13,440 --> 00:07:16,040 Speaker 1: We now know if you're sixty five years and older 103 00:07:16,480 --> 00:07:18,800 Speaker 1: and fall to the sixth biggest killer, and if you 104 00:07:18,840 --> 00:07:21,120 Speaker 1: fall over and break a hipper of pelvis, you got 105 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:23,480 Speaker 1: a fifty percent chance of being dead within the next 106 00:07:23,520 --> 00:07:26,000 Speaker 1: five years. And we know that falls are the fifth 107 00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:29,160 Speaker 1: biggest killer of people over the years of seventy five. 108 00:07:29,200 --> 00:07:32,720 Speaker 1: But it's not just falls, it's when you lose muscle 109 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:37,920 Speaker 1: and particularly those fast twitch fibers, we start to lose 110 00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 1: our capacities for daily living. And as that sarcopenia accelerates, 111 00:07:43,960 --> 00:07:45,960 Speaker 1: then people are less able to get up and out 112 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:50,000 Speaker 1: of their chair effectively, to climb stirs, to go out 113 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:52,480 Speaker 1: and interact with the world, to get on buses, to 114 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,960 Speaker 1: get on planes, to lift stuff above their head, and 115 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:59,520 Speaker 1: then they start to socially withdraw. And then when you 116 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:03,760 Speaker 1: socially that is the worst thing possible for your brain. 117 00:08:04,280 --> 00:08:07,960 Speaker 1: So to kind of summarize this whole thing. We know 118 00:08:08,120 --> 00:08:14,120 Speaker 1: that resistance training it has independent effects cardiovascular effects, so 119 00:08:14,400 --> 00:08:19,000 Speaker 1: really helpful from that perspective, but helps to preserve our muscle. 120 00:08:19,120 --> 00:08:22,400 Speaker 1: And I think our skeletal muscle is one of the 121 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:26,280 Speaker 1: most important organs in the body, and we know that 122 00:08:26,320 --> 00:08:31,880 Speaker 1: those mild kinds are really really critical for the good 123 00:08:31,960 --> 00:08:36,760 Speaker 1: functioning of all of your organs. Those maccounts are anti inflammatory, 124 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:42,240 Speaker 1: to help to combat oxidative stress and actually combats all 125 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:46,840 Speaker 1: the major hallmarks of aging. So that's why we all 126 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:49,960 Speaker 1: need to lift heavy shit. I don't care what age 127 00:08:49,960 --> 00:08:53,120 Speaker 1: you are or what sex you are. Yeah, gotta lift 128 00:08:53,160 --> 00:08:57,320 Speaker 1: heavy shit. And that becomes more and more important as 129 00:08:57,360 --> 00:09:01,600 Speaker 1: you get older, and especiallyally for females as they go 130 00:09:01,720 --> 00:09:06,040 Speaker 1: post menopause, resistance training becomes one of the most important things. 131 00:09:06,040 --> 00:09:09,000 Speaker 1: I'm actually going to do a whole podcast on this 132 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:13,800 Speaker 1: later on on resistance training and particularly as we get older, 133 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:16,880 Speaker 1: the things that we need to focus on. But we 134 00:09:17,360 --> 00:09:20,360 Speaker 1: just have to preserve that muscle because if you start 135 00:09:20,400 --> 00:09:24,680 Speaker 1: to lose the muscle through syclopnia, it increases the risk 136 00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:27,920 Speaker 1: of our whole host of diseases of both the body 137 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:31,880 Speaker 1: and the brain because you are just losing the world's 138 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:36,160 Speaker 1: best medicine and that's Mile Kinds. And next week I'm 139 00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:39,600 Speaker 1: going to look at how to design a good strength 140 00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:43,520 Speaker 1: training or resistance training program throughout the ages. Catch you 141 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:44,080 Speaker 1: next time.