Studies Recommend Longer and Strenuous Exercise

June 12, 2015

Unlocking Word Meanings
 今日の単語・フレーズ

Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article. 

1. prolonged / prəˈlɑːŋd / (adj.) – longer than normal
Example: Make sure to stay hydrated during prolonged exercise.

2. strenuous /ˈstrɛn yu əs/ (adj.) – requiring great effort or force
Example: Nathan sprained his ankle during his strenuous training.

3. occasionally / əˈkeɪʒənəli / (adv.) – not too often
Example: I occasionally exercise on weekday mornings.

4. contradict / ˌkɒn trəˈdɪkt / (v.) – to go against or disagree with something
Example: The new study contradicted the older studies.

5. mortality / mɔrˈtæl ɪ ti / (n.) – death of a living thing
Example: The country’s increasing mortality rate is alarming.


Article
 ニュース記事

Read the text below.
Two newly published studies have found that prolonged and strenuous exercise may not be as bad as previous studies have suggested.

The first study from Harvard University revealed that people who exercised for 450 minutes every week were 39% less likely to experience premature death. Those who did 150 minutes of exercise weekly had 31% lower risk of early death, while those who exercised for less than 150 minutes a week were 20% less likely to die early.

This came from a survey of over 661,000 middle-aged adults whose results were compared with more than 116,000 death records from the same group.

The second study conducted by Australian researchers examined the degree of exercise of more than 200,000 Australian participants. Researchers then compared the data with the deaths among the participants.

According to this study’s results, participants who met the recommended 150 minutes of exercise had lower risks of early death regardless of how moderate their exercise was. Also, those who occasionally did strenuous exercise had an even lower risk of experiencing premature death.

The results of these studies contradict that of a study from the Journal of the American College of Cardiology published in February this year. In the study, joggers who did more than 150 minutes of exercise every week had a 66% mortality risk. On the other hand, those who exercised for less than 15o minutes a week had the lowest risk of dying early. The older study also found that moderate jogging is better and more beneficial than a strenuous one.

Viewpoint Discussion
 ディスカッションテーマ

Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.  

Discussion A

·         Between the contradicting studies, which do you prefer? Why?
·         Would you now exercise longer after reading the article? Why or why not?

Discussion B

·         Do you agree with the saying, “too much of anything is not good”?
·         If you were to recommend a time limit for exercising, what would it be and why?

June 12, 2015