https://medicalxpress.com/fitness-news/ en-us Latest health news and information about Fitness & Physical Activity You've probably heard that hitting 10,000 steps a day is the key to health and longevity. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-day.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 16:40:01 EDT news705059402 Physical activity and controlling blood sugar in midlife are associated with a significantly slower rate of cognitive decline later in life, with exercise particularly beneficial for Hispanics, new research from UT Health San Antonio, the academic health center of The University of Texas at San Antonio, suggests. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-degree-physical-cognitive-decline-hispanic.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 16:30:03 EDT news705078782 Nutrition strategies for concussion management are being implemented by dietitians to support Australia's elite collision sport athletes, new Griffith University research has found. Lead author Dr. Nathan Delang interviewed 14 accredited sports dietitians who work across professional AFL, rugby league and rugby union teams to explore their practices and perspectives related to concussion management. The findings are published in The Journal of Nutrition. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-concussion-recovery-pantry.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 14:40:08 EDT news705057061 Could athletes trade meat for plants and maintain their performance? In a multi-university study, researchers found that recreational runners and resistance trainers did just that. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-athletic-based-diets.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 13:40:01 EDT news705056161 When it comes to maintaining healthy bones, how intensely we exercise may matter more than how much we exercise, according to researchers at Semmelweis University. Their study, published in Sports Medicine – Open, found that bone formation was stimulated most effectively by activities involving explosive movements, rapid changes of direction and turning. The findings could help improve exercise programs designed to maintain bone health and prevent osteoporosis. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-weight-strong-bones-football-handball.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 11:40:05 EDT news705048213 Research that began by analyzing more than 400,000 gym-goers worldwide has illustrated the importance of persevering through early struggles. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-dont-succeed.html Tue, 04 Aug 2026 10:40:06 EDT news705047281 It is easy to assume that harder training always produces better results. In resistance training, which includes lifting weights or using resistance machines, taking every set to the point where you cannot complete another repetition may create more fatigue without producing better results. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-stronger-limit.html Mon, 03 Aug 2026 10:40:07 EDT news704966882 People in rural communities have long experienced disproportionate levels of chronic disease, driven in part by systemic barriers to physical activity. A new study from North Carolina State University highlights ways some rural communities use strategic investments and community collaboration to address these challenges. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-rural-communities-obstacles-physical.html Mon, 03 Aug 2026 08:23:01 EDT news704964135 Community gathering places, where residents lead group activities, have been promoted across Japan as part of long-term care prevention efforts to extend healthy life expectancy. These often involve exercise and social interaction and are meant to help prevent cognitive decline. However, previous studies have reported inconsistent findings regarding their association with cognitive disability. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-mind-body-community-counteract-cognitive.html Fri, 31 Jul 2026 14:00:10 EDT news704721541 A 10-year study of residents of São Paulo, Brazil, reveals that leisure-time physical activity is highly unequal and that the gap between social strata is widening. While highly educated white men are exercising more, women from racial minorities with low levels of education have the lowest rates of physical activity during leisure time. In contrast, exercise associated with urban transportation, such as walking to work, is distributed more evenly across different population segments. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-social-inequality-exacerbates-barriers-physical.html Fri, 31 Jul 2026 13:40:05 EDT news704721121 Not every disease announces itself with obvious symptoms. Some develop quietly, going unnoticed until they begin to take a serious toll on health. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is one of them. Rather than a single disease, it is a combination of at least three conditions—including high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess belly fat, high triglycerides and low HDL (good) cholesterol—that together raise the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-equal-metabolic-syndrome.html Fri, 31 Jul 2026 12:40:06 EDT news704696757 From yoga studios to boutique gyms, workouts performed beneath infrared heating panels have become a visible fitness trend. Studios often claim that infrared heat improves circulation, flexibility and recovery, reduces inflammation and helps the body to "detoxify." https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-infrared-workouts-expert.html Thu, 30 Jul 2026 09:00:03 EDT news704619722 Yoga is best known for improving flexibility, building strength and reducing stress. Research suggests it may also help ease symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a common digestive disorder that affects millions of people. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-yoga-relieve-bowel-syndrome-symptoms.html Thu, 30 Jul 2026 08:00:06 EDT news704613961 Researchers from the Universities of Hildesheim, Bonn and Freiburg have uncovered how human skeletal muscle responds to resistance exercise at the molecular level. Their findings provide new insights that could help optimize training programs for athletes, improve rehabilitation strategies and counteract age-related muscle loss. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-resistance-muscle-machinery.html Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:00:06 EDT news704463602 An international team of researchers led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and the University of Bonn—with participation from the Barça Innovation Hub (BIHUB), FC Barcelona's medical department and the company Made of Genes—has developed a computer-based approach that improves injury prediction in elite women's soccer. The study, published in npj Digital Medicine, combines artificial intelligence, survival analysis, statistical calibration and decision theory to transform risk prediction into a useful tool for clinical and sports practice. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-cumulative-fatigue-emerges-predictor-women.html Tue, 28 Jul 2026 15:00:02 EDT news704463201 Winter has a way of making the office, train and school pickup line feel like a giant Petri dish of germs and potential infection. It's also when many of us quietly let our exercise routines slide. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-regular-sick-winter.html Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:00:01 EDT news704454002 Maintaining balance is essential for preserving functional independence during aging. A study led by researchers from Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH) and ISABIAL suggests that trunk stability may play a particularly relevant role in this process. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-trunk-stability-emerges-stronger-marker.html Tue, 28 Jul 2026 04:00:01 EDT news703934341 There is now widespread evidence that years of heading, tackling and collisions in football and rugby could increase the risk of dementia and other neurological diseases. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-sport-dementia.html Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:20:05 EDT news704365021 For parents around the world, weekend mornings often look the same: standing on the sidelines of a soccer field, basketball court or American football field. In Australia's southern states, it's often an Australian rules football oval. But a few weeks ago, tragedy struck when footballer Nathan Fitzgerald died after sustaining three blows to the head during a game. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-lowtech-brain-injuries-sport.html Fri, 24 Jul 2026 10:00:04 EDT news704101681 As the Commonwealth Games approach, athletes chasing every extra edge on the track, court or in the pool might not find it in training, but on their dinner plates. In a study published in Sports Medicine—Open, University of Wollongong (UOW) researchers analyzed the diets and omega-3 blood levels of professional athletes, finding that almost three-quarters could benefit from increasing their intake of these healthy fats. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-omega-intake-boost-recovery-term.html Thu, 23 Jul 2026 10:00:09 EDT news704016482 A panel of federal health advisers on Thursday narrowly recommended easing access to several peptides popular with wellness influencers and celebrities, despite warnings from government scientists that the chemicals haven't been shown to be safe or effective. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-fda-peptide-favored-rfk-jr.html Thu, 23 Jul 2026 04:30:01 EDT news703998964 Infrared saunas are increasingly marketed as a post-exercise recovery tool that can reduce pain and fatigue, but the scientific evidence supporting these claims remains limited and conflicting. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-infrared-saunas-workout-recovery-evidence.html Wed, 22 Jul 2026 23:20:01 EDT news703943390 Exercise finds improvements in pain and function may fall short of what patients would notice in daily life, but more studies are needed to make firm conclusions, a new publication in Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews finds. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-hip-arthritis-pain-function-gains.html Wed, 22 Jul 2026 20:00:04 EDT news703915093 Researchers have developed a breath detector with a chemical sensor that sniffs out when your body is burning fat through a single exhale. Reporting in Device, the handheld, smartphone-assisted device measures acetone—a molecule that is released into the breath when the body burns fat—in about 90 seconds with laboratory-level accuracy. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-breathalyzer-body-fat.html Wed, 22 Jul 2026 11:00:05 EDT news703841521 With fitness culture booming and "no days off" mindsets trending, new research is challenging common assumptions about "exercise addiction"—finding that the issue is real but often misunderstood and overstated. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-addiction-real-overstated.html Wed, 22 Jul 2026 07:00:11 EDT news703917841 Research suggests that more than half of children with autism spectrum disorder, a neurodevelopmental condition, experience motor impairments. An analysis in Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology indicates that sports-based interventions may improve motor skills in children with autism spectrum disorder, with martial arts and aquatic training demonstrating the most consistent benefits. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-sports-motor-skills-autistic-children.html Wed, 22 Jul 2026 03:00:02 EDT news703828500 Heart failure already affects more than 60 million people worldwide and is one of the leading causes of hospitalization among people 65 and older. Although it is commonly associated with advanced cardiovascular disease, it actually develops over many years, often without symptoms. Authors of a new expert statement published in the European Heart Journal argue that this is precisely why prevention may become the most effective weapon in tackling one of the greatest challenges of modern medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-latest-evidence-factors-early-intervention.html Tue, 21 Jul 2026 21:20:04 EDT news703856966 Australian research has shown for the first time that a swimming program can be clinically effective at reducing disability caused by chronic low back pain. Published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the EduSwim clinical trial found that an eight-week individualized program of swimming and education, guided by a physiotherapist, improved function and reduced pain significantly more than education alone in people with back pain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-trial-disability-chronic-pain.html Tue, 21 Jul 2026 10:10:01 EDT news703841341 Collagen is a protein found in skin, hair, nails, tendons, cartilage and bones. Our bodies naturally produce collagen using the foods we eat. But in recent years, collagen peptides have gained popularity as a supplement to support joint, hair, skin and gut health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-collagen-peptides-bone-health-female.html Mon, 20 Jul 2026 11:20:01 EDT news703755662 Schoolchildren in Hong Kong face intense academic demands, with long hours of sedentary study leaving little time for movement. On average, their physical activity falls short of the World Health Organization's recommendation of at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-parents-boost-children-physical.html Wed, 15 Jul 2026 18:00:01 EDT news703345923