Resistance training is medicine: effects of strength training on health.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review synthesizing literature without systematic search methodology or meta-analytic data
PubMed 22777332 · doi:10.1249/JSR.0b013e31825dabb8
What was done
This paper is a narrative review synthesizing literature on the musculoskeletal, metabolic, cardiovascular, and functional health effects of resistance training in adults, specifically addressing consequences of physical inactivity and aging. Search methodology, study selection, and review protocols were not specified in the abstract.
What was found
Inactive adults experience a 3% to 8% loss of muscle mass per decade, accompanied by reduced resting metabolic rate (RMR) and fat accumulation. Ten weeks of resistance training was reported to increase lean mass by 1.4 kg, increase RMR by 7%, and reduce fat mass by 1.8 kg. Bone mineral density was reported to increase by 1% to 3%. The abstract also reports improvements in physical performance, movement control, walking speed, functional independence, cognitive abilities, self-esteem, glycemic markers (decreased visceral fat, reduced HbA1c, increased GLUT4 density, improved insulin sensitivity), lipid profiles (decreased LDL-C and triglycerides, increased HDL-C), resting blood pressure, and symptom severity in low back pain, arthritis, and fibromyalgia.
Why it matters
This review aggregates evidence supporting resistance training as a clinical intervention to counter sarcopenia and improve multiorgan metabolic and cardiovascular risk factors in adults.
Limits
The abstract describes a narrative review without reporting the number of included studies, total sample sizes, search methodology, or risk of bias assessments. No confidence intervals, variance measures, or statistical significance metrics are provided for the cited numerical estimates.
Cited by
- supports After age 50, muscle mass loss accelerates to 1% to 2% per year, totaling 10% to 14% loss per decade.