Exercises That Are Good For Bones, And Bad for Bones

November 15, 2009 7:29 pm 5 comments

The most interesting thing in Gretchen Reynold's piece in the New York Times Well column about exercises that are good for bones is the revelation that even the experts aren't really sure. In fact, Reynolds writes, scientists actually seem to be becoming less sure. Reynolds tells us that there is some agreement that brisk walking will increase bone density, at least in older women, but the walking "must be truly brisk." The confounding findings, says Reynolds, suggest that too much exercise may actually reduce bone density, as witnessed in a study of competitive cyclists who lost
bone density over the course of a long training season. What's bone-building wannabe to do? Reynolds writes that current state-of-the-science message suggest that the best
exercise is to "simply jump up and down, for as long as the downstairs
neighbor will tolerate."

Read more in the Times' Well column.

5 Comments

  • Wm. Ibrahim Muslim

    It would seem that exercise, like religion, is a matter of personal expression and individual beliefs wherein one must do that which one feels is best for him or herself regardless of what others say or believe.
    As some seem to exercise religiously, this might hold some validity…but then again.
    If it feels good and seems to bear the desired results do it.
    If it hurts (too much) and doesn’t seem to helping, then don’t do it and let all the mad scientist types say and/or publish whatever gets them the next grant.

  • interesting

  • LIke anything involving over doing it ,it will lead to bad results DUH! Over eat or over exercise, all things must be met with common sense and intelligent thought. Over training is Ok for short term goal, but to over do it over long, intense periods results in predicable breakdown of all mechanize equipment, wether car or body. Recuperation is as important as use. Be careful, smart and attentive to the needs of your body. Pain is natures way of telling you to back off, listen to your body, do not ignore the signs and signals. Be practical for your age and physical stature, allow extra time warming up and stretching in cool downs. Get good professional advise, read about your activity before you begin, not after your injured.
    weigh the benefits verses the results, allow more time to heal than you need. Doctors are for diagnosis, trainers and therapist are for healing.

  • of course cycling may increase bone loss; there is no impact on bones.

  • “Jumping up and down ” is good.
    Isn’t that what rope-jumpers do?
    Try it. It’s great. (But ask your doctor first.)
    to Wm. Ibrahim – - That’s right. Each of us should
    choose the religious fantasy that is best for us.

Leave a Reply


Recent Posts

  • Pain

    Research: Massage Reduces Inflammation In Tired Muscles

    Yes, it feels good, and yes, it can be pricey, but massage also does some important muscle reclamation work after a particularly tough workout. Researchers at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging at McMaster University in Hamilton Ontario conducted genetic analysis of muscle biopsies taken from the quadriceps of eleven young men after they had exercised to exhaustion on a stationary bicycle. A McMaster news release reports on the research, for which one of their legs was randomly chosen [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain

    Exercise May Slow Prostate Cancer

    The findings are preliminary, but they are also provocative: research conducted at the University of California at San Francisco suggests that men who do vigorous exercise three times a week have an increase in the expression of certain genes that are known to suppress tumors, including some breast cancer tumors that similar to prostate cancer tumors. HealthDay reports that when researchers compared prostate genes from 70 men with low-risk prostate cancer to normal prostate genes from 70 men they found [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain

    Fat Hurts: Overweight People Feel 20 Percent More Pain

    How much more does it hurt to be fat? Twenty percent, according to researchers at Stony Brook University. And that’s just if you’re overweight. Obese people hurt even more: 68 percent more for Obese 1 group, 136 percent more for Obese 2 group, and 254 percent more for Obese 3 group, as defined by the World Health Organization. A Stony Brook news release reports that when researchers at the school analyzed data about body mass index and the experience of [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain

    Study: Heart Attack May Be Closer Than You Think

    Forget what your doctor told you about your risk of heart attack. Researchers at Northwestern University have published a study in the New England Journal of Medicine asserting that the common medical practice of focusing on the next ten years of a patient’s life has been giving people a false sense of security about their chances of having a heart attack or stroke. A Northwestern news release reports that when the scientists measured risk factors for cardiovascular disease — blood [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain

    For Back Pain, Try A Kettlebell Workout

    Kettlebells, known as “girya” in their native Russia, are basically cannonballs with handles attached to them, and they’ve been used as long as anyone can remember to train Russian athletes. Now researchers in Denmark have found something else they’re good for: pumping up core muscles so well that back pain is significantly reduced. The New York Times reports on the Danish study, in which 40 middle-aged women with back and shoulder pain were randomly assigned to one of two groups. [...]

    Read more →
  • Gear Study: People Can’t Walk And Text At The Same Time

    Study: People Can’t Walk And Text At The Same Time

    Driving and texting at the same time is understood to be dangerous, if not deadly. But what about walking and texting? Researchers at Stony Brook University put 33 men and women, all experienced texters, through a simple test to see how much texting would influence walking. A Stony Brook news release reports that the test subjects were shown a target on the floor eight meters away. Then, after obstructing vision of the target and floor, they were told to walk [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain How To Tell If You’re Overtraining

    How To Tell If You’re Overtraining

    The question of how much training is too much training is a tough one, but as Gina Kolata warns in her Personal Best column, it’s an important one, because overtraining is worse than under training. In fact, it can be worse than no training at all. Kolata quotes William Kraemer, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut, explaining that “People think a good workout is, ‘I am in a pile of sweat and puking.” Wrong. John Raglin, a [...]

    Read more →
  • Pain When Not To Take That Daily Aspirin

    When Not To Take That Daily Aspirin

    Common wisdom, rarely discouraged by aspirin manufacturers, holds that an aspirin a day keeps heart trouble away. Yet now comes a study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, suggesting that for some people without heart problems, an aspirin a day can do more harm than good. The Washington Post reports that the new research analyzed data from nine studies, involving 102,621 adults (average age, 57) who had been randomly assigned to take aspirin, generally 100 milligrams or less, or [...]

    Read more →