With Exercise, More Is Better, More Intense Is Not

In the latest victory of the tortoise over the hare, a new study by researchers at the Duke University Medical Center suggests that when it comes to exercise, intensity matters less than persistence. As this piece in News-Medical.Net reports, the research found that even moderate exercise, such as walking 12 miles a week, can "significantly increase cardio fitness." The study, published in the October issue of Chest, found that peak VO2 levels and time to exhaustion–two commonly-used measurements of fitness–did not differ substantially in groups whose exercise was moderate and groups whose exercise was intense. The amount of exercise did, however, make a difference. Those who did 20 miles a week at the same intensity as those who did 12 miles a week showed significant improvement in peak oxygen consumption. Read more.