The favorable relationship between exercise and cardiovascular health has been announced, and reannounced, and reannounced for decades. Nonetheless, only a minority of Americans participate in regular vigorous exercise, and the numbers of adult Americans who are categorized as overweight or obese continues to climb. Does one have to be an athlete to claim the rewards of physical activity? Maybe not.
Kearney et al performed a study among overweight adult men and women who acknowledged being essentially sedentary. Subjects randomized to exercise were compared to subjects performing stretching activities, with the outcome of interest being the effects on vascular health as measured by arterial stiffness (reflected in pulse wave velocity) and production of nitric oxide.
It is the novelty of the applied exercise program that might strike clinicians as having potential for widespread use: The exercise subjects were asked to engage in three 10-minute sessions of brisk walking on 5 days of each week. Brisk walking was described as sufficient to produce slight shortness of breath but not impede the ability to hold a conversation. Outcomes were measured at the end of the 6-month intervention, and 4 months after the intervention ended.
At study end, as well as 4 months post-intervention, there was a statistically significant difference in pulse-wave velocity and nitric oxide production in the exercise group compared to the stretching group. Even for those with too-busy schedules, lack of athletic prowess, and distaste for overly strenuous activity, a menu of brief episodes of brisk walking for only 5 days per week might be an attractive option.
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