Answered questions
Muscles & movement
96 answered questions · 598 studies
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What does creatine do for people over sixty?
For people over sixty, creatine has reasonably well-supported benefits for muscle strength, muscle mass, and memory,…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does sitting all day increase your risk of heart problems?
Sitting a lot increases your risk of heart failure and heart-related mortality, even if you exercise regularly. Just 30…
Yes · Strong evidence
Does whole-body cryotherapy actually work for your health?
For specific applications, such as pain following knee surgery and possibly improved lipid levels, WBC shows small positive…
Preliminary evidence
Do you really need to take 10,000 steps a day?
No, 10,000 steps is not a magic threshold: health gains are already present at 4,000 to 6,000 steps a day, and the return per…
No · Moderate evidence
Does creatine work better with carbohydrates?
Insulin can promote creatine uptake in muscles, but at the same time a large carbohydrate meal slows intestinal absorption.…
Preliminary evidence
Do you need to do a loading phase with creatine?
You do not need a loading phase to ultimately achieve the same effect, but if you are older and want to gain muscle strength…
Moderate evidence
Is creatine monohydrate just as good as more expensive forms?
Creatine monohydrate works at least as well as more expensive alternatives and is the best-documented choice in terms of…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Why is muscle strength so important for healthy ageing?
Muscle strength is one of the best-supported pillars of healthy ageing: losing it increases the risk of falls, disability and…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does walking do enough to maintain your muscles?
Walking alone is not enough to maintain muscle as you age. Add strength training and ensure adequate protein intake for the…
No · Moderate evidence
Can you regain lost muscle mass in later life?
Yes, regaining lost muscle mass in later life is possible, but the earlier you start, the better the outcome. Resistance…
Yes · Strong evidence
How much muscle strength do you lose per year after the age of fifty?
After the age of fifty, you can quickly lose 3 to 4% of leg strength per year, far more than muscle mass alone would suggest.…
Why do bones break more easily as you get older?
Bones become more brittle over the years because bone breakdown outpaces formation, hormonal changes (oestrogen) accelerate…
Does strength training help against osteoporosis?
Strength training demonstrably helps against osteoporosis: it increases bone density by one to three percent and also reduces…
Yes · Strong evidence
Can you still build bone mass after fifty?
Forming new bone after fifty is only possible to a limited extent, but slowing or stopping bone loss is very achievable with…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Is moderate exercise good or bad for your immune system?
Moderate exercise (sessions up to 45 minutes) is good for your immune system and is associated with fewer infections. Only…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Can grip strength predict how long you will live?
Grip strength is one of the better-supported predictors of premature death: the lower it is, the higher the risk. It is a…
Does physiotherapy really help if you already have osteoporosis?
Supervised exercise genuinely helps if you have osteoporosis: it slows bone loss, improves your balance and muscle strength,…
Yes · Strong evidence
What does your balance have to do with preventing bone fractures?
Good balance and muscle strength reduce the risk of falling, and fewer falls mean fewer bone fractures. Supervised balance and…
Does the amount of muscle mass you have affect your hormone balance?
More muscle mass improves your insulin sensitivity and is associated with more favourable hormone values after training, but…
Do male hormones affect how quickly men age?
Declining testosterone measurably accelerates ageing of muscles, bones and sexual function, but the links to mood and skin are…
What does too much sitting do to your biological clock?
Too much sitting demonstrably weakens your day-night rhythm, even after just one day. Moving more, and preferably in the…
Does vibration plate training really help against bone loss?
Vibration plate training helps against bone loss, particularly in the lower back and partly in the hip, but regular strength…
Yes · Strong evidence
What happens to your cells when you don't move enough?
Moving too little demonstrably disrupts how your cells handle sugar, signals and inflammatory processes. Even a small increase…
How quickly do you lose bone mass when you stop exercising?
A precise timeline for bone loss after stopping exercise is not established by this research. What you can do: strength…
Can intense exercise actually make you age faster?
Regular exercise slows ageing rather than accelerating it, but for vascular health in people with excess weight, weight loss…
No · Moderate evidence
Does physical inactivity accelerate skin ageing?
Based on the available studies, nothing can be said about whether physical inactivity accelerates skin ageing. If you want to…
Insufficient evidence
Do you age faster if you have chronic pain?
There is no direct evidence that chronic pain accelerates biological ageing, but the inactivity that often accompanies it is a…
Can cold showers make your cells healthier?
For people who do strength training, cold immersion makes muscle cells less capable of growing rather than more so, and the…
No · Preliminary evidence
Does sitting a lot increase my risk of cancer, even if I exercise?
Sitting a lot increases your risk of certain cancers, even if you exercise. In addition to moving regularly, try to reduce…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does walking outside during the day help me sleep better at night?
A daily walk of around half an hour outside helps improve your sleep, as shown by a randomised study. The surroundings matter…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Can exercise really improve your hormone levels as you get older?
Yes, exercise demonstrably raises several hormone levels in people over 40. The strongest practical benefit lies in muscle…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Can exercise improve your gut microbiome?
Moderate regular exercise demonstrably improves your gut microbiome, but you need to keep exercising because the effect…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Can having too little body fat damage your bones?
Too little fat can damage your bones, but muscle mass and the location of fat matter at least as much. If you have concerns…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does strength training work better against high blood sugar than cardio?
Strength training appears to work better than cardio alone in people with diabetes and a normal weight, but in overweight…
Moderate evidence
Does cold showering or an ice bath speed up your metabolism?
Cold water raises your metabolism only during the immersion itself; after that the effect disappears. If you want to build…
No · Preliminary evidence
How quickly can you change your biological age with exercise?
Exercise can produce biologically measurable improvement, but how quickly and by how much depends heavily on what you measure:…
Preliminary evidence
Does muscle tissue burn more calories than fat, even at rest?
Muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue, and strength training produces a measurable increase in resting…
What happens to your bones when you lie in bed for a long time?
Prolonged bed rest demonstrably leads to substantial bone loss, particularly in the hip, spine and heel bone. Recovery takes…
Is walking enough to slow down bone loss?
Walking helps a little with mild bone loss, but is probably not enough if you genuinely want to build or preserve bone density…
Moderate evidence
Does running protect your bones better than swimming?
Running clearly stimulates bone formation better than activities without impact loading, but a direct comparison with swimming…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Why do you gain weight more easily after 40, even if you eat the same amount?
After forty, your body burns fewer calories, mainly due to muscle loss and a lower resting metabolism. You therefore do not…
Is it bad for your brain if you don't get enough exercise for years on end?
Years of insufficient physical activity are associated with a considerably higher risk of dementia and cognitive decline,…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Is it helpful to occasionally go for a long walk, or are short bursts of movement spread throughout the day better?
Short bursts of movement spread throughout the day appear to be at least as valuable as one long walk, and for people who…
Yes · Moderate evidence
What does exercising right before bed do to my sleep?
Vigorous exercise within 4 hours of bedtime demonstrably worsens your sleep; schedule your workout earlier in the day and you…
Does it matter what kind of protein I eat, or does only the total amount count?
The type of protein matters: animal proteins and well-combined plant-based sources provide more building material for muscles…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does strength training help against insulin resistance?
Strength training probably helps against insulin resistance, although the effect is most strongly demonstrated in combination…
Yes · Strong evidence
How much protein can your body use in a single meal?
Your body can use more than 20-25 grams of protein per meal, especially when that protein is combined with carbohydrates and…
Does extra protein help with losing weight without losing muscle?
Extra protein helps preserve muscle mass while losing weight, but works best in combination with resistance training. Aim for…
Yes · Strong evidence
What is the best time of day to eat protein for your muscles?
Distribution throughout the day matters most: eat a portion of 20-40 g of protein every 3 to 4 hours, and the precise timing…
Do older adults need more protein than younger people?
Older adults likely need more protein than the standard guideline of 0.8 grams per kilogram suggests. As a healthy older…
Does exercise activate autophagy?
Exercise activates autophagy in muscle cells through well-described mechanisms, but most of the evidence comes from animal and…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does creatine help prevent muscle loss with GLP-1 medications like Ozempic?
Whether creatine genuinely helps preserve muscle during GLP-1 medication use is unknown, because it has never been directly…
Preliminary evidence
What should you avoid combining with creatine?
Combining creatine with statins calls for caution. Creatine raises a blood marker that doctors need in order to detect…
Preliminary evidence
Why don't doctors always recommend creatine?
Doctors often hesitate because creatine raises a standard blood marker for kidney function, but this does not reflect actual…
Does creatine speed up muscle recovery?
Creatine (3-5 g/day) can likely speed up muscle recovery after intense training and improve strength and muscle mass, but for…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does walking in green spaces or nature benefit your health?
Walking in green spaces or living close to green space shows clear indications of a positive effect, particularly on stress…
Yes · Moderate evidence
What is AMPK and how do you activate it (through fasting or exercise)?
Exercise is the most solid way to activate AMPK. Fasting has surprisingly little measurable effect in muscle itself, and a…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Why is it harder for me to lose weight than it used to be?
Ageing lowers your energy expenditure through muscle loss and a slower metabolism, making weight loss objectively harder.…
Does my metabolism really slow down as I get older?
Your resting metabolism really does decline with age, but the biggest culprit is muscle loss, not some mysterious metabolic…
Can adults still build bone mass, or only maintain it?
As an adult you can still increase your bone mass slightly, primarily through heavy strength training combined with…
Yes · Moderate evidence
How do I keep my joints flexible and prevent osteoarthritis?
Stretching keeps joints flexible, but targeted strength training of the surrounding muscles provides the strongest protection.…
Moderate evidence
How much rest do my muscles need between training sessions as I get older?
Two training sessions per week per muscle group, with at least 48 hours of rest in between, is well supported as an effective…
Moderate evidence
Is strength training still safe and worthwhile after the age of 70?
Strength training after 70 is both safe and worthwhile: the evidence for greater muscle strength and reduced fall risk is…
Yes · Strong evidence
Does stretching actually help, or is it a waste of effort?
Stretching demonstrably improves flexibility, and 10 minutes per week is already enough for the maximum effect. For preventing…
Yes · Strong evidence
Does running cause osteoarthritis?
Recreational running probably does not cause osteoarthritis and is actually associated with less osteoarthritis than a…
No · Moderate evidence
Is walking enough, or do I really need to do strength training as well?
Walking is good, but to prevent falls you really do need balance exercises and strength training alongside it. That is much…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does urolithin A from pomegranate do anything for your muscles and energy?
UA supplements (1000 mg/day) improve muscular endurance in older adults, but do not demonstrably increase total energy…
Moderate evidence
Does regular exercise help against that creeping chronic inflammation?
Exercise demonstrably lowers chronic low-grade inflammation. For most people and for people with type 2 diabetes, a…
Yes · Strong evidence
What are mitochondria, and can you make them younger or more energetic?
Regular exercise is by far the best-supported means of keeping mitochondria healthy; NAD+ supplements sound appealing but have…
Yes · Strong evidence
Does heading the ball frequently in football, or sustaining a concussion, increase my risk of dementia later in life?
Professional footballers who head the ball frequently have a considerably higher risk of dementia than goalkeepers or people…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does my walking speed say anything about how fast I am aging?
Yes, your walking speed says something about how your body is ageing. People who walk slower than 0.8 to 1.0 metres per second…
Which type of training has the best-proven track record against bone loss in later life?
High-intensity resistance training (at least 70-85% of maximum load, two to three times per week, for at least eight to twelve…
Strong evidence
Does exercise help your immune system as you age?
Regular, moderate exercise helps your immune system by reducing smouldering inflammation. Suddenly training very hard without…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Which lifestyle factors influence your biological age the most?
Exercise is the most powerful brake on biological ageing. A Mediterranean diet, good sleep and less stress also help, but the…
Moderate evidence
What does your VO2max say about how fast you are ageing?
A higher VO2max is strongly associated with lower mortality and a more favourable biological age, but is more of a gauge of…
What is the best training to prevent muscle loss after age 60?
Strength training, combined with adequate protein intake, is the best-supported strategy against muscle loss after age 60. If…
Strong evidence
Does climbing stairs actually do anything for my heart?
Yes, climbing stairs genuinely does something for your heart. Climbing roughly 50 to 100 steps a day is associated with fewer…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Is exercising in the morning or in the evening better?
For fat reduction and improved blood lipids, morning training has the strongest evidence. For cardiovascular health,…
Moderate evidence
How quickly do I lose fitness if I stop exercising for a while?
Your aerobic fitness starts to decline noticeably after just a few weeks, with losses of up to around 22% after 8 weeks of…
Does yoga or pilates help with pain and ageing?
Yoga and pilates both reduce pain in chronic low back pain, comparably to or better than conventional rehabilitation. If you…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does creatine also help ordinary people, not just athletes?
Creatine is not just for athletes. Combined with resistance training, it helps older adults gain muscle strength, and probably…
Yes · Moderate evidence
Does strength training help with healthy ageing?
Strength training is one of the best-supported interventions for healthy ageing: training two to three times per week with…
Yes · Strong evidence
How often and how hard should I strength train?
Start with 2 to 3 training days per week, sets of 8 to 12 repetitions close to your maximum, and increase the weight as soon…
Moderate evidence
How do I know if I am losing too much muscle mass (sarcopenia)?
Concerned about muscle loss? Ask your general practitioner or specialist to measure both your muscle strength and your…
How much exercise do I need to live longer?
The biggest health gain comes from just a little exercise. Going from nothing to 150 minutes per week gives a 31% lower risk…
Moderate evidence
How much protein do I need to maintain my muscle mass?
For most healthy adults who want to maintain their muscle mass, 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per…
Is sitting a lot bad for you, even if I exercise enough?
Those who get just over an hour of brisk exercise each day likely neutralise the mortality risk of prolonged sitting. But also…
Yes · Moderate evidence
What is VO2max and how important is it for living longer?
A higher VO2max is strongly associated with a longer lifespan. Regular physical activity pays off for everyone, even if you…
Does balance training help prevent falls in later life?
Supervised balance and resistance training or group tai chi lasting at least three months are the best choice if you want to…
Yes · Strong evidence
Can you exercise too much?
Training too much without sufficient recovery can lead to overtraining syndrome, with demonstrable harm to your performance,…
Yes · Moderate evidence
How much cardio per week do I really need?
For most people, 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio per week, plus strength training twice a week, is the proven minimum…
Moderate evidence
Stronger bones and strength training -- does it help?
Strength training is a well-supported way to maintain or improve bone density, with the greatest effect from 2 to 3 supervised…
Yes · Strong evidence
Does my grip strength say anything about how long I will live?
Grip strength says something meaningful about your overall health and risk of death, but it is not a measure to rely on in…
How many steps per day should I aim for?
Health benefits begin well below 10,000 steps. For most adults, the sweet spot is between 7,000 and 9,000 steps per day.
Moderate evidence
What is zone 2 training?
Zone 2 training is well defined as an intensity zone, but for recreational athletes there is not yet strong evidence that it…
Does magnesium help with poor sleep and muscle cramps, and which form should you take?
Magnesium may modestly speed up falling asleep in older adults with insomnia, but the evidence is small-scale and of limited…
Preliminary evidence