exercise news stories on Newser

Some New Yorkers Work Out 3 Times Daily

Neal Colgrass — Sun, 06 May 2012 15:58:48 CDT

Think you're in shape? Then meet the New Yorkers who endure—sorry, enjoy —two or three workouts a day, along with a full-time job and whatever family or social life they can fit in. “It’s New York, and I think that everyone’s always just trying to look better and better,...

Exercising Makes Bosses Nicer

Kevin Spak — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:33:08 CST

Got a crabby boss? Maybe you should get your office to chip in on a gym membership. Bosses who work out are less likely to mistreat their employees, according to a recent study in the Journal of Business and Psychology , spotted by Scientific American . Researchers had 98 MBA students fill...

No Pain, No Gain? Think Again

Dustin Lushing — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 10:16:09 CST

A new trend emerging among recreational athletes is extreme exercise, but this habit of overtraining is counterproductive to getting fit and healthy, writes Gina Kolata for the New York Times ' Well blog . The body needs to rest—between sets, between days of exercise, etc.—a sentiment that many well-meaning...

Hormone Find Could Yield 'Exercise Pill'

Rob Quinn — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 03:06:54 CST

In research that may alarm gym owners, scientists have found a hormone responsible for many of exercise's health benefits. The newly discovered hormone—named "irisin" after the Greek messenger goddess Iris—turns ordinary white fat cells into energy-burning brown fat, and helps ward off diabetes by improving glucose tolerance, Time...

Time to Replace Calorie Counts With Exercise Warnings

Matt Cantor — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 09:52:05 CST

If we want kids to understand the health impact of soda, we should drop the calorie counts from the cans and replace them with exercise notices, a study suggests. The cans should warn potential buyers, for example, that they'll need to run for 50 minutes to work off that Coke,...

First Lady, 300K Others Jump Into Record Book

Matt Cantor — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 12:30:05 CST

In October, Michelle Obama sought to break a fairly obscure world record: "number of people doing jumping jacks in a 24-hour period." With the help of 300,264 friends, she achieved her goal, she announced in a video posted today at Let's Move , handily breaking the old record of some...

Does This Chair Make My Butt Look Fat?

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 02:00:00 CST

You've worried about clothes making you look fat—apparently, you should have worried about chairs actually making you fat. That's because sitting for long stretches can actually make you fatter, scientists have found. Studies suggest that the pressure placed in the butt and hips from sitting too long can generate...

Save Your Heart: Walk Before the Big Meal

Rob Quinn — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 03:01:43 CST

The best time to walk off a gut-busting Thanksgiving dinner is at least 12 hours before you eat it, researchers say. Studies have found that light exercise, like a half-hour walk, done 12 to 16 hours before a big meal significantly reduces the post-meal spike in a type of fat...

Another Study Says Sitting Too Long Ups Cancer Risk

Rob Quinn — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 04:56:22 CDT

And the "sitting is bad for you" drum beats on: Even people who get the recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day have a higher risk of developing cancer if they spend most of the rest of their waking hours sitting down, researchers say. An analysis presented at the American...