By Merritt McKinney
NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters Health) -- Pumping iron isn't just for
bodybuilders. A panel of experts at the American Heart Association (AHA) reports
that weight training is a good way to improve heart health, even for some people
with heart disease.
Weight training can be a part of a healthy exercise routine that also
includes regular aerobic exercise, according to a report. The study findings,
scheduled to be published in the February 22nd issue of Circulation: Journal of
the American Heart Association, are being released early.
In addition, study findings in the February issue of Hypertension: Journal
of the American Heart Association support the advisory, showing that weight
training can reduce resting blood pressure.
"Mild-to-moderate resistance training can provide an effective method for
improving muscular strength and endurance, preventing and managing a variety of
chronic medical conditions, modifying coronary risk factors and enhancing
psychosocial well-being," Dr. Barry A. Franklin, of William Beaumont Hospital in
Royal Oak, Michigan, and a multicenter panel note in the AHA scientific
advisory.
In an interview with Reuters Health, Franklin said that weight training
can improve cardiovascular health in several ways, including lowering LDL
("bad") cholesterol, increasing HDL ("good") cholesterol and lowering blood
pressure. In addition, weight training may improve the way the body processes
sugar, which may reduce the risk of diabetes, he said.
Franklin said that numerous studies have documented the safety of moderate
weight training in healthy adults and some people with heart disease. However,
Franklin said the panel does not advise weight training for patients with chest
pain due to unstable angina, uncontrolled high blood pressure, uncontrolled
irregular heartbeats, heart failure, and severe heart-valve disease.
For healthy people, the panel recommends lifting weights 2 to 3 days per
week. The panel notes that a single set of exercises can provide almost as much
benefit as several sets, so to make it easier to set aside time to exercise, it
recommends a single set of 8 to 10 exercises during each session. This should
take from 20 to 30 minutes.
For people with cardiovascular disease who are considered to be at low
risk for heart attacks and other complications, the panel recommends beginning
with stretching and flexibility exercises and gradually moving on to light
weights. People with heart disease should begin a weight-training program only
under the supervision of a physician.
Despite the recommendation that low-risk cardiac patients perform
weight-training exercises, the panel concludes it is too soon to advise
moderate- and high-risk individuals to lift weights until more studies are
conducted, since the exertion could be dangerous.
In a review of 11 studies on the effect of weight training on blood
pressure, Dr. George A. Kelley and Kristi Sharpe Kelley, both of Northern
Illinois University in DeKalb, found that lifting weights can reduce resting
blood pressure. The reductions were similar in people who lifted heavier weights
with long rests in between sets and in those who lifted lighter weights but took
shorter rests.
Although the reductions in blood pressure were small, they might lead to a
lower risk of stroke and heart disease, according to the report. The review also
found that weight training reduced body fat and increased muscle mass.
The researchers note, however, that studies involving only people with
high blood pressure are needed to test the effects of weight training as a
treatment for the condition.
