Specific types of exercise can significantly reduce risk of heart disease among men

A pool of 44,452 men from the Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study were monitored via questionnaire every two years from 1986 to 1998 to determine potential coronary heart disease risk factors and type and intensity of leisure time activity. While studies have been conducted on the beneficial relationship of exercise and risk of CHD, there is a scarcity of information on what role exercise type and intensity level play in reducing CHD risk. Researchers found that men who trained with weights for 30 minutes or more per week reduced their risk for CHD by 23 percent compared to those who didn’t train with weights. Men who ran for an hour or more each week reduced their risk by 42 percent compared to non-runners, and walking at a brisk pace for more than half an hour was associated with an 18 percent reduction compared to non-walkers’ risk. Walking pace, independent of the number of hours spent walking, had an important impact on reducing the risk of CHD.