https://medicalxpress.com/fitness-news/ en-us Latest health news and information about Fitness & Physical Activity Timing exercise to match body clock chronotype—the natural predisposition to morning or evening alertness—may lower cardiovascular disease risk among those who are already vulnerable, suggests research published in the open access journal Open Heart. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-body-clock-chronotype-cardiovascular-disease.html Tue, 14 Apr 2026 18:30:03 EDT news695294521 A research team including scientists and engineers from University of Colorado Boulder, CU Anschutz and Colorado State University has developed a suite of new therapies that prompt aging or damaged joints to repair themselves within weeks, according to animal studies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-simple-shot-reverse-osteoarthritis-weeks.html Sun, 12 Apr 2026 14:30:07 EDT news694772759 Adding as little as 1,700 to 5,500 steps per day can offset the risk of a list of chronic diseases—including obesity, diabetes and sleep apnea—according to a new study from a corresponding author with Vanderbilt Health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-adding-day-offsets-chronic-disease.html Fri, 10 Apr 2026 13:40:01 EDT news695045821 The numbers are sobering: nearly 80% of the world's teenagers don't get enough physical activity, according to the World Health Organization. But a new longitudinal study from Université de Montréal suggests the seeds of that sedentary lifestyle—or an active one—may be sown much earlier than anyone realized. Like when a child is 2.5 years of age. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-play-age-decade-motion.html Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:06 EDT news695033641 Artificial intelligence can write text messages encouraging physical activity that most older adults consider appropriate and good quality, but their feelings about AI—and whether they know AI wrote the message—impact their response, suggests a new study in the Journals of Gerontology. The research is an important first step in helping health programs use AI to support large-scale behavior change, said lead author Allyson Tabaczynski, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-pocket-sized-personal-trainer-ai.html Thu, 09 Apr 2026 16:40:05 EDT news694965722 An estimated 55 million people live with dementia worldwide, and both its prevalence and cost are expected to increase, with global costs projected to reach $2 trillion dollars by 2030. Current treatments for preventing or treating dementia have limited efficacy; therefore, public health efforts have also aimed at healthy lifestyle factors to reduce the risk of dementia before symptoms occur. Healthy behaviors such as regular physical activity and good sleep hygiene are known to support cognitive health. However, there remains a need to better understand their relationship to dementia. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-physical-linked-subsequent-dementia.html Wed, 08 Apr 2026 14:00:01 EDT news694795416 Being physically fit improves our health and keeps illness at bay. This relationship has long been assumed for numerous disorders, but until now there has been no scientific evidence demonstrating a causal link between the beneficial effects of physical exercise and a reduced risk of becoming ill. A new study, published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, has now confirmed this. The research was led by a team from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute and Universitat Ramon Llull and has established a relationship between genetics associated with good cardiorespiratory fitness and around thirty diseases. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-physically-diseases-causal-link.html Wed, 08 Apr 2026 12:40:01 EDT news694867622 The health benefits of cold-water immersion have been closely studied in recent years, thanks to the growing popularity of cold-water swimming. Now new research from the University of Chichester has found that as little as five minutes immersed in cold water can have almost the same benefits as much longer stints, helping provide a quick mood-boosting solution for physically fit people with low mood. The resulting paper is published in the journal Lifestyle Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-minutes-cold-boost-mood.html Thu, 02 Apr 2026 16:40:01 EDT news694362923 In a recent study of U.S. adults, walking was—by far—the most popular leisure-time physical activity, while rural residents also enjoyed gardening, hunting and fishing, and urban residents more commonly reported running, weightlifting and dancing. Urban residents were more likely than rural residents to meet physical activity guidelines. Christiaan Abildso of West Virginia University, U.S., and colleagues present these findings in PLOS One. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-urban-rural-habits-dominates.html Wed, 01 Apr 2026 14:00:01 EDT news694191121