Apparently, it doesn’t take much exercise to cut your risk of heart attack or stroke in half. In fact, according to researchers at Iowa State University, less than one hour of weight lifting a week could reduce your risk for a heart attack or stroke by 40 to 70 percent. How do we know? Because when Iowa State researchers analyzed data of nearly 13,000 adults in the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study, measuring three health outcomes– cardiovascular events such as heart attack and stroke that did not result in death, all cardiovascular events including death, and any type of death, they found that resistance exercise reduced the risk for all three. Wait, there’s more. When the researchers looked at the relationship between resistance exercise and diabetes as well as hypercholesterolemia, or high cholesterol, they also found that resistance exercise lowered the risk for both. The researchers’ most surprising finding (claim) goes like this: the benefits of strength training are independent of running, walking or other aerobic activity. That’s right, if reducing the risk of heart attack is your goal, you don’t need the recommended quota of aerobic exercise; all you need is a set of weights.