It's clear that exercise is good for our bodies and our souls, but the challenge of figuring out the optimal exercise regime continues to fascinate scientists.
The regularity of exercise is more important than how long the individual workouts last, at least according to the latest study in this area.
The researchers found that short bursts of activity built up more muscle strength than longer training sessions that were less frequent.
Ken Nosaka is an exercise and sports science professor at Edith Cowan University in Australia.
The participants were divided into three groups to work out. One group did six contractions a day for five days a week, one group did the same 30 contractions a week but crammed them all into one day, and the other group did just six.
The last group didn't show a change in strength or thickness of the muscles. The other two groups had the same increase in muscle thickness, but only the group that spread out their exercises developed muscle strength.
The scientists think it would apply to other types of workouts. The main message is that you don't have to wear yourself out to improve muscle strength and thickness and that you can have two days off a week.
Nosaka says that muscle adaptions happen when we are resting. There would be no improvement if someone could train 24 hours a day.
Muscles need rest to improve their strength and their muscles like to be stimulated more frequently.
It was better to simply restart a normal routine after missing a few days of exercise than to try and catch up on time that had been missed.
For some people, getting regular exercise in every day is more important than spending hours at the gym once or twice a week according to previous research.
A decrease in muscle mass is linked to a host of diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, dementia, type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis.
Nosaka says that muscle strength is important. It could help prevent a decline in strength with age.
The research has appeared in a journal.
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