Longevity- Fitness & Organs function: Use it or Lose it

Longevity or delaying the aging process is a result of having optimal muscle mass and strong and healthy organs.

When engaging in fitness activities, all other organs such as lungs, heart, adrenals, liver, etc. need to be engaged in order to support the demanding condition and body movement, which as a result they get stronger.

This also builds resilience against traumas such as an illness, accident, and a surgery in which organs need to work harder to overcome the high trauma.

A fit person’s organs run more efficiently compared to an unfit individual who as a result of sedentary lifestyle, their organs get less efficient and lose their strength gradually and operate at a lower capacity.

When comes to muscle mass, more is not necessary better! 

more muscle mass than optimal amount is also problematic for organs, as in order to maintain such a large mass, one needs to perform frequent high volume exercise and consume higher calories to maintain such a physique, which soon becomes a metabolic burden and creates chronic stress which also shortens the lifespan.

High intensity exercise not only impacts the number and size of mitochondria but also increases the total amount of oxidative enzymes which exists in mitochondria. This improves better fuel breakdown and energy production overall, translating to a better exercise performance in both low and high intensity as well as better protection against oxidative stress which has a key impact on aging process. 

Conclusion:

High intensity exercise has a very distinct impact on mitochondrial size and oxidative enzyme than endurance exercise. Therefore, to get the most advantage of all biochemical impacts of exercise, one needs to adopt all types of exercises of low, high, and moderate intensity, sprints and strength training with a balanced rest/ stress cycles.

Reference:

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21451146/