Health experts swear by one daily exercise to turn time on ageing

Retired men and women who regularly exercise are better able to stay mentally alert and battle the effects of long-term aging, a fascinating new study reveals. The NHS and experts recommend adults over 65 do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity a week to boost their health and « reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke ».

Now researchers – from the University of Birmingham and the University of Extremadura, in Spain – have worked with adults to find out whether age would boost, and regular exercise decrease, the impact of mental fatigue on cognitive and physical performance tests. In one of their two studies, sedentary men between 65 and 79 performed worse in cognitive and physical tests compared to 52-64 year olds, with impairments greater when mentally fatigued.

Their second study with retired men and women aged 66-72 found performance when mentally rested or fatigued was better in the physically active older adults than their sedentary peers.

Published in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, they noted that mental fatigue impaired performance in older adults and performance when in states of fatigue and relaxation were « worsened by aging and inactivity”.

Study co-author Professor Chris Ring, from the University of Birmingham, told the Daily Express: « This study shows how important physical activity is for adults as they get older, and in general for avoiding the worst impacts of mental fatigue on cognitive and physical performance.

« This research from our ongoing international collaborative venture confirms that regular physical activity has a host of benefits, with increased physical fitness associated with improved cognition, increased exercise capacity, and greater mental fatigue resilience.

« For older adults in particular, regular exercise represents a simple but effective means to stave off the effects of age in a host of areas, including avoiding the negative effects of feeling mental fatigued after a particularly taxing task. »

He went on: « This is part of a research program examining cognitive and exercise performance in older adults and the effectiveness of countermeasures to mitigate age-related and mental fatigue-related impairments in performance.

« Taken together, the research – which is a collaboration between the University of Extremadura, Spain, and University of Birmingham – shows that age-related declines in cognition and physical functioning can be tackled using different strategies, including engaging in regular physical activity, combined warmup activities and combined training interventions. »

Professor Ring suggests the following three active steps can be taken by older adults wishing to perform better in demanding situations: « First, people can increase their levels of regular physical activity.

« Second, people can warmup using a combination of cognitive and physical tasks to better prepare them for upcoming physical performance overcome, especially when feeling mentally fatigued.

« Third, people can train using a combination of cognitive and exercise tasks – a method called Brain Endurance Training or BET – to improve their mental fatigue resilience and enhance their physical performance ».

In 2015 a pilot study found that avoiding a sedentary lifestyle in our more advanced years can provide a wealth of benefits to general well-being.

Older people spend an average of 8.5 waking hours a day sitting or lying down, according to the Group Health Research Institute in Seattle. 

Cutting back by just 27 minutes a day produced benefits, the US study suggested. But it found some pensioners needed to be educated about the positive effects of being more active.