How to live longer? Get up and just move – any kind of exercise does our body and mind good, studies and experts say

‘There are very few outcomes that being physically active does not improve,’ says a US researcher on the link between health and exercise

It does not really matter what you do to stay active – as long as you do something, an exercise physiologist says. ‘Just get off the couch’

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Moving does a body and mind good but, since the pandemic, people are moving less than ever. The answer? “Just get off the couch,” says an expert. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 12:45pm, 30 May 2024Updated: 8:17am, 14 Jun 2024

A century ago, people threw medicine balls and did callisthenics to stay fit. Then came the hula hoop, vibrating belts and aerobics, before people started dancing their way into Latin-inspired cardio workouts or joining a high-intensity fitness programme.

During the pandemic, exercise bicycling boomed.

While how people exercise changes with each new trend, the idea that physical activity is key to good health is more than a passing fad. Even the ancient Greeks – namely Herodicus, considered the father of sports medicine, and Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine – were convinced exercise was key, although they could not agree on how strenuous it should be.

That question would not be resolved for thousands of years. And as science continues to evolve, the answer may change yet again.

Herodicus, physician of the fifth century BC, is considered the father of sports medicine.

What will not change is that staying active benefits health in multiple ways – including lowering the risk for heart attacks, strokes, dementia and several types of cancer, boosting mental health and potentially reversing type 2 diabetes.