By JENNY HOPE

Last updated at 08:43 14 April 2008

Exercise: Cycling can hold back the years

Taking regular aerobic exercise could stop the biological clock and delay ageing by up to 12 years, claim researchers.







Keeping fit by jogging or cycling through middle age and beyond slows and even reverses the decline in muscle power, balance and co-ordination in later life.

Without regular workouts, maximum aerobic power falls in men by up to half between the ages of 20 and 60.

Women begin to lose fitness aged around 35, with aerobic power also falling by up to half by the age of 60.

Eventually, everyday activities become "intolerably fatiguing" for older men and women, says the study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

But cardiovascular training - which strengthens the heart and lungs - would compensate for the onset of middle age, when the body's capacity to use oxygen and generate energy falls with each passing decade.

And it has the added bonus of prolonging physical independence in old age, according to physical education experts at Toronto University.

They were exploring the idea, first put forward by them 20 years ago, that one of the most important factors influencing the quality of life in old people was the maintenance of sufficient "aerobic power".

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The latest study analysed existing research to discover how far the benefits of training last into old age.

It found that relatively high-intensity aerobic exercise over a relatively long period of time could boost maximal aerobic power by 25 per cent.

Dr Roy Shephard, of the university's faculty of physical education and health, said long-term aerobic training can maintain or restore aerobic power in later life.

The effect is the equivalent of turning back the biological clock for older people by up to 12 years, he added.

He said: "A regular exercise programme can slow or reverse the loss of aerobic fitness, reducing the individual's biological age and prolonging independence."

In the UK, most people do not exercise five times a week for 30 minutes or more - the Government's official recommendation for maximum health benefits.

The level of exertion should be enough to raise the heart rate to 120 beats a minute or higher, which includes a brisk walk and swimming.

But taking a stroll or even doing the gardening is also regarded as healthy activity.

A recent survey revealed at least one-quarter of men and women take no moderate or vigorous physical activity.

Other evidence shows regular activity cuts the risk of a range of health problems including diabetes, depression and heart disease. It also reduces the chances of premature death from any illness.