Harvard professor debunks the biggest exercise myths | Daniel Lieberman
Summary
TLDRThis video challenges common myths about exercise, drawing insights from evolution and anthropology. It emphasizes that our ancestors were active hunter-gatherers, walking extraordinary distances daily. Contrary to popular belief, activities like running don't necessarily damage knees but can promote joint repair. As we age, maintaining physical activity and strength training becomes crucial to avoid sarcopenia (muscle loss) and preserve health span. The video urges viewers to embrace exercise as a natural part of aging, dispelling the notion that reduced activity is normal. With compelling evidence, it advocates for regular physical activity to enhance overall well-being and longevity.
Takeaways
- 🏃♀️ Walking is the most fundamental form of human physical activity that we evolved for, with hunter-gatherers taking around 10-15,000 steps per day.
- ⚠️ Many common myths about exercise persist, such as the belief that our ancestors were incredibly strong, that there's a trade-off between speed and strength, and that physical inactivity is normal with aging.
- 😓 Only 20% of Americans meet the minimum recommended exercise guidelines of 150 minutes per week, despite most people wanting to exercise more.
- 🏃 Contrary to popular belief, running does not necessarily destroy your knees, and can actually help maintain joint health if done properly.
- 🏋️♀️ Strength training becomes increasingly important as we age to avoid sarcopenia (muscle loss) and maintain vigor and health.
- 🏃♂️ The idea of running long distances multiple times a week on pavement is a modern Western practice, unlike ancestral running patterns.
- 🧠 Physical activity increases not just lifespan but, more importantly, healthspan – the duration of healthy living.
- 🔄 Inactivity can lead to a vicious cycle of reduced fitness, strength, and further inactivity as we age.
- 💪 Hunter-gatherers maintained physical activity and strength into older age due to their active lifestyles, unlike the decline seen in modern societies.
- 🚶♀️ Rather than reducing physical activity as we get older, maintaining exercise and strength training is crucial for preserving health and avoiding age-related decline.
Q & A
What is the fundamental form of human physical activity that we evolved to do?
-According to the script, the most fundamental and basic form of human physical activity that we evolved to do is walking. It mentions that walking is the one physical activity that humans evolved to do.
How many steps do hunter-gatherers typically take in a day compared to the average American?
-The script states that the average hunter-gatherer takes 10,000 to 15,000 steps a day, while the average American before the pandemic was taking only around 4,700 steps a day.
What percentage of Americans get the minimum recommended amount of exercise?
-According to the script, only about 20% of Americans get the very minimum levels of exercise that every health organization in the world recommends for adults, which is 150 minutes per week. This means that 80% of Americans struggle to get even the basic recommended amount of exercise.
Is the myth that running will destroy your knees supported by scientific evidence?
-No, the script states that there are numerous randomized, controlled studies (the gold standard for research) which show that people who run more are not more likely to develop arthritis. In fact, research shows that physical activities like running can actually cause your joints to repair themselves and stay healthy.
Why does the script suggest that modern running habits may contribute to injuries?
-The script suggests that some running injuries may be caused because we don't learn how to run properly anymore. It states that running is a skill that needs to be learned, like swimming or throwing. Additionally, it notes that hunter-gatherers would likely run only once a week or so, rather than the modern habit of running long distances on pavement multiple times per week, which is described as a "weird, strange Western thing."
What is 'sarcopenia' and why is it a concerning issue as people age?
-Sarcopenia is the loss of flesh or muscle mass as people get older. The script states that this is a serious, pernicious issue of aging in the Western world, as people tend to lose a lot of strength and power, making basic tasks difficult. This can lead to a disastrous, vicious cycle of becoming less active, less fit, and losing more strength.
Why does the script suggest that physical activity becomes more important as we age?
-The script suggests that as we get older, strength training and physical activity become more important, not less, in order to avoid the losses of vigor and strength associated with sarcopenia. It states that the evidence is incontrovertible that physical activity is beneficial for preserving health as we age.
What is the difference between 'lifespan' and 'healthspan' mentioned in the script?
-The script distinguishes between lifespan, which is how long someone lives, and healthspan, which is how long someone remains healthy. It states that before modern medicine, healthspan was the key factor that determined lifespan, as physical activity increases healthspan, which in turn increases lifespan.
What advice does the script give regarding physical activity levels as people get older?
-The script advises against cutting back on physical activity as we get older. Instead, it recommends maintaining physical activity levels, including strength training and endurance activities, in order to preserve health and avoid the detrimental effects of aging.
What is the overall message the script is trying to convey about exercise and physical activity?
-The overall message of the script is to debunk common myths about exercise and physical activity using an evolutionary and anthropological lens. It emphasizes the importance of regular physical activity, particularly walking and strength training, for maintaining health and functional abilities throughout the lifespan, especially as we age.
Outlines
🏃♀️ Debunking Common Myths About Exercise
The paragraph discusses various myths surrounding exercise, such as the belief that our ancestors were incredibly strong, the trade-off between speed and strength, the notion that it's normal to be less physically active with age, and the idea of a perfect type and amount of exercise. The author aims to debunk these myths using the lenses of evolution and anthropology in a book. Walking is highlighted as the most fundamental form of human physical activity, with hunter-gatherers taking 10,000 to 15,000 steps daily, compared to the average American's 4,700 steps before the pandemic. Only 20% of Americans meet the minimum recommended exercise levels, despite most people expressing a desire for sufficient exercise.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Myths
💡Evolution
💡Anthropology
💡Walking
💡Exercise guidelines
💡Running
💡Sarcopenia
💡Strength training
💡Healthspan
💡Incontrovertible evidence
Highlights
One myth is that our ancestors were really incredibly strong.
That there's a trade-off between speed and strength.
That it's normal to be less physically active as you get older.
That there's a perfect type of exercise, perfect amount of exercise.
If there's any one physical activity that humans evolved to do, it's to walk.
The average sort of hunter-gatherer will take 10, 15,000 steps a day.
The average American before the pandemic was taking something like 4,700 and something steps a day.
Only about 20% of Americans get the very minimum levels of exercise that every health organization in the world thinks is the minimum for an adult.
We live in a world where we no longer have to be physically active. We now, in a very strange way, have to choose to be physically active.
One of the biggest myths about running is that it'll destroy your knees.
There's tons and tons of studies, more than a dozen, randomized, controlled-perspective, gold standard studies, which show that people who run more are not more likely to get arthritis.
Physical activities like running actually cause your joints to repair themselves, and to stay healthy.
Running is a skill, like swimming or throwing or, you know, all kinds of other things that we do.
The idea that you go running five, six times a week, for long distances on pavement, etc., these are all kinda weird, strange Western things.
The most pernicious, the most serious, the most problematic, the most concerning way in which we think about exercise in the Western world, is that as people get older, it's kind of normal to be less physically active.
As people get older in the West, they tend to lose a lot of strength and power, and that makes basic tasks difficult. And when that happens, people become less active. When they become less active, they become less fit. And it kind of sets in motion, a really disastrous, vicious cycle.
As we get older, strength training becomes more and more important, so that we can avoid those losses of vigor, that are really important to maintaining your health, and staying strong and staying healthy as we age.
What physical activity does, is it increases your healthspan, and your healthspan therefore increases your lifespan.
So as we get older, let's not cut back, on the physical activity. Let's maintain it, do some strength, do some endurance. The evidence is incontrovertible. There's tons of data which show that as we get older, the more physical activity is really beneficial.
Transcripts
- Oh, my gosh, there's so many myths about exercise,
it's hard to know where to start.
One myth is that our ancestors
were really incredibly strong.
That there's a trade-off between speed and strength.
That it's normal to be less physically active
as you get older.
That there's a perfect type of exercise.
Perfect amount of exercise.
It's become really clear to me
that a lot of people are exercised about exercise.
So I wanted to write a book to try to debunk
a lot of myths about physical activity
and about exercise using the lenses
of evolution and anthropology.
If there's any one physical activity that humans
evolved to do, it's to walk.
Walking is the most fundamental basic form
of human physical activity.
The average sort of hunter-gatherer will take
10, 15,000 steps a day.
The average American before the pandemic
was taking something like 4,700 and something steps a day.
Only about 20% of Americans get the very minimum levels
of exercise that every health organization
in the world thinks is the minimum for an adult-
which is 150 minutes a week.
So 80% of us really struggle
and fail to get very basic amounts of exercise,
but almost everyone says
that they want to get enough exercise.
We live in a world where we no longer have to be
physically active.
We now, in a very strange way, have to choose
to be physically active, and that's not so easy
'cause there were no ellipticals
and other kinds of machines back in the Stone Age.
If you wanna get your heart rate up
you probably were running.
And one of the biggest myths
about running is that it'll destroy your knees.
There's tons and tons of studies, more than a dozen
randomized, controlled-perspective, gold standard studies,
which show that people who run more are not more likely
to get arthritis.
In fact, lots of research shows
that physical activities like running
actually cause your joints to repair themselves
and to stay healthy.
The other kinds of running injuries-
I think that a lot of them are caused
because we don't learn how to run properly anymore.
I think running is a skill
like swimming or throwing or, you know,
all kinds of other things that we do.
And the other thing is that when people run
in other cultures, especially in the Stone Age,
you know, they didn't run every day,
and they weren't running on a regular basis,
and they'd probably go running maybe once a week
or something like that.
So the idea that you go running five, six times a week
for long distances on pavement, etc.,
these are all kinda weird, strange Western things,
and there's nothing necessarily wrong with them
but you have to learn how to do it properly.
And you have to build up enough strength
and learn the skills of running
but let's not scare people off running.
I think the most pernicious, the most serious,
the most problematic, the most concerning way
in which we think about exercise in the Western world
is that as people get older
it's kind of normal to be less physically active.
Americans, as we get older,
know that strength declines rapidly.
By the time people in their 60s and 70s,
they're pretty frail,
but hunter-gatherers remain fairly physically active
as they age because they're doing stuff.
They have to lift things and carry things
and do stuff that keep them strong.
And the end result is that they maintain that strength
and that strength is important
because one of the real serious,
most pernicious issues of aging
is a problem called 'Sarcopenia.'
Sarco is "flesh" and penia is "loss"-
so it's flesh loss.
As people get older in the West,
they tend to lose a lot of strength and power,
and that makes basic tasks difficult.
And when that happens, people become less active.
When they become less active, they become less fit.
And it kind of sets in motion
a really disastrous, vicious cycle.
As we get older, strength training
becomes more and more important
so that we can avoid those losses of vigor
that are really important to maintaining your health
and staying strong and staying healthy as we age.
We're a unique species, we evolve to live
long after we stop reproducing.
We often think about effects
of physical activity on lifespan, how long you live.
Before modern medicine, what determined how long you lived
was actually how long you were healthy, your 'healthspan.'
And so healthspan is really the key thing.
And what physical activity does
is it increases your healthspan
and your healthspan therefore increases your lifespan.
So as we get older, let's not cut back
on the physical activity.
Let's maintain it, do some strength, do some endurance.
The evidence is incontrovertible.
There's tons of data which show that as we get older,
the more physical activity is really beneficial.
And other studies have found the same thing-
that physical activity, as you get older,
is more important, not less important
for preserving your health.
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