Healthy living
Exercise and fitness
Keeping fit is a state of mind
Whatever your physical activity involves, if you believe it’s giving your body a good workout then you are benefiting more than you might think
A new study published in the journal Psychological Science reveals that people who think that a physical activity is good for them reap more health benefits than people who don't count what they're doing as exercise. The researchers conclude that exercise involves a beneficial placebo effect.
Researchers based at Harvard in the US told a group of 84 female hotel cleaners that their work, cleaning about 15 rooms a day, was sufficient exercise to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
These workers were then compared to another group of cleaners given the same amount of work but not told of the positive effects of the exercise they were doing. The health and fitness levels of the workers were assessed at the start of the study and then again four weeks later.
At the end of the trial period the group that believed that their work was good for their health were found to be more fit and in better shape than their uninformed peers.
The research team were careful to rule out the possibility that the health improvements resulted from any other behavioural changes, such as change in diet or increased activity levels.
On average the women in the informed group lost two pounds, lowered their blood pressure by 10 percent and reduced the size of their waists in relation to their hips. The same could not be said of the group who weren't told that their work was good exercise.
This is the first time that researchers have looked into whether the belief in the value of an activity may increase its positive effect on health and fitness.
Keeping physically active is essential if you want to reduce your risk of suffering from a variety of health problems including coronary heart disease and obesity, but you don't have to go to the gym to get fit. Like the hotel cleaners in the American study you can simply build physical activity into your daily routine.
Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
