Major health benefits from strengthening and balance activity

New evidence review concludes that adults should do strengthening and balancing exercises twice a week alongside aerobic exercise.

An evidence review commissioned by Public Health England and the Centre for Ageing Better has found that muscle and bone strengthening and balance activities continue to have great health benefits for all adults, including older adults aged 65 years and over.

In older adults, poor muscle strength increases the risk of a fall by 76% and those who have already had a fall are three times more likely to fall again. Strengthening and balance activities not only help to prevent this, but also help improve your mood, sleeping patterns, increase your energy levels and reduce the risk of an early death.

Activities found to have the most benefit for muscle and bone strengthening include:

• ball games
• racket sports
• dance
• Nordic walking
• resistance training (usually training with weights, but including body weight exercises which can be performed anywhere)

The review underlines the importance of the UK CMO's guidance that all adults need to undertake strengthening and balance activities suitable for them at least twice per week in order to maintain and improve health.