DailyDirt: You Know The First Guy To Run A Marathon Died Immediately After, Right?

Everything in moderation... including exercise. Exercise is undoubtedly good for you if you compare it to a sedentary lifestyle, but running marathons every day isn't going to do you any favors. But where is the optimal sweet spot for exercise? It's not the same for everyone, but it looks like most Americans aren't doing enough. Fortunately, the right amount probably isn't as much as you'd think.

• If you're exercising just to live longer, then you should probably optimize your workout because too much of a good thing has its risks. Any amount of exercise is better than none at all, but the minimum recommended dose isn't exactly clear. Still, it looks like walking for 450 minutes per week is about where the benefits plateau for a broad study of thousands of adults. [url]
• Some studies showed that exercising strenuously more than three times a week correlated with increased vascular risk. The benefits of moderate exercise peak at about 4-6 sessions of walking/gardening per week. [url]
• Exercise isn't going to help you lose weight necessarily. There's plenty of data to suggest that our bodies adapt to exercise -- and metabolisms slow down as people lose weight. Exercise is still good for you, but again, after some point, the benefits peak -- so for significant weight loss, you need to exercise and change your dietary habits. (duh?) [url]

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