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(Circulation. 2003;107:e9014.)
© 2003 American Heart Association, Inc.

Cardiovascular News

Ruth SoRelle, MPH

Circulation Newswriter

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

Intensity of Physical Exercise Depends on Where You Start

If a person thinks he or she is exercising hard or at least moderately, the risk of coronary heart disease in that individual goes down—even if the person is not meeting current recommendations for activity, according to researchers from Harvard University School of Medicine and The Brigham and Woman’s Hospital, both in Boston, Mass, in a report in this week’s issue of Circulation (Circulation. 2003;107:1110–1116).

In this study led by I-Min Lee, ScD, MBBS, an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard, researchers monitored 7337 men aged an average of 66 years for an average of 7 years. In the beginning, the men reported their actual activities and their perceived level of exertion when they did exercise. During the follow-up period, 551 men developed coronary heart disease. After adjusting for a variety of factors, the researchers found that the relative risks of those who perceived their exercise exertion as moderate was 0.86; somewhat strong, 0.69; strong or even more intense, 0.72, when compared to those who perceived their exercise as weak or less intensive. "This inverse association extended to men not fulfilling current recommendations" of expending at least 1000 kcal per week or not engaging in activities of at least 3 metabolic equivalents for 30 minutes daily.

The researchers concluded: "Recommendations for ‘moderate’-intensity physical activity may need to consider individual fitness levels instead of globally prescribing activities" at certain levels. They also said, "Our findings in no way negate current activity recommendations—men who expended >1000 kcal/week or who exercised . . . [Full Text of this Article]