Monday, 11 November 2019

Intensity over frequency?

Whether or not an elderly friend or relative has been diagnosed with a condition like dementia or Alzheimer's, their memory is likely to slowly decline as they age. The great news is that a link has recently been found between maximising the intensity of their exercise regime and improving their memory as they get older. 

Intensity or frequency - which is the most important? 

You have probably been told that exercising regularly is the most important part of a healthy lifestyle. However, when it comes to memory improvement, especially in dementia sufferers, the intensity of the exercise is much more essential. Researchers involved in a recent memory study claimed that exercise intensity was key to seeing improvements and that frequency played almost no role in the results whatsoever.

Benefits of high-intensity workouts on memory loss

The study, which was published in the Applied Psychology, Nutrition and Metabolism journal, showed that seniors who exercised in short, intense bursts saw an improvement of up to 30% in memory performance, while participants who worked out moderately saw no improvement, on average.

"There is urgent need for interventions that reduce dementia risk in healthy older adults. Only recently have we begun to appreciate the role that lifestyle plays, and the greatest modifying risk factor of all is physical activity," says Jennifer Heisz, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University and lead author of the study. "This work will help to inform the public on exercise prescriptions for brain health so that they know exactly what types of exercises boost memory and keep dementia at bay," she says.

The study was conducted on numerous older adults between the age of 60 – 88. The adults selected to participate in the study were not regular exercisers, but were otherwise healthy. They were monitored over a period of three months, participating in three workout sessions per week. Some performed high-intensity interval training (HIIT) or moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) while a separate control group engaged in stretching only. The HIIT group completed four sets of high-intensity exercise on a treadmill for a duration of four minutes, followed by a recovery period. The MICT protocol included one set of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise for nearly 50 minutes. 

The Reward is in the Results

The results demonstrated that the participants who engaged in HIIT had a substantial increase in high-interference memory compared to the MICT or control groups.

These results are rather staggering. Luckily, it is never too late to adjust your elderly loved one's exercise routine to start reaping the benefits! Speak to their live-in care provider to set something up today!

More in this Category: