- Researchers in Australia studied the physical activity patterns of over 11,000 women.
Balancing children, a job, and social relationships with maintaining physical and mental well-being can often seem like an insurmountable challenge.
Engaging in physical activity in one's 50s can improve their overall well-being.
Research suggests that it may be possible to counteract the effects of a sedentary lifestyle by engaging in regular physical activity, even at an advanced age.
Scientists gathered information from over 11,000 women at three-year intervals starting from 1996. All participants were between 47 and 52 years old at the study's onset.
The participants were divided into three groups based on their adherence to the World Health Organization's physical activity guidelines of 150 minutes of physical activity per week, over a period of 15 years: those who consistently met the guidelines, those who initially did not meet them but began to meet the criteria at ages 55, 60, or 65, and those who never met the guidelines.
The researchers also evaluated their health-related quality of life, rating their physical health on a scale of 100.
On average, individuals who regularly meet the physical activity guidelines and those who first start meeting them at the age of 55 have a three-point higher physical health score than those who never meet them.
A higher score implies that a person is more likely to rate their health as good, report no limitations in performing strenuous or moderate exercise, and perform physical tasks such as carrying groceries or climbing stairs without difficulty.
The researchers from the University of Sydney have stated: 'Combined with current studies, this research supports the increasing accumulation of evidence that engaging in regular physical activity in adulthood is beneficial.
Maintaining regular physical activity for as many years as possible can have substantial health advantages, particularly with regards to physical functioning, even for women who only start meeting fitness guidelines in their late 50s.
Our research indicates that for women, staying actively engaged during the middle-aged years is crucial in ensuring the greatest physical health advantages later in life.
Women should ideally elevate their physical activity levels to comply with the recommended guidelines by the time they reach the age of 55.
"It's not too late for middle-aged women to reap the benefits of exercising," Dr. Binh Nguyen, a co-author of the study, stated that.
Let's hope that these study results motivate middle-aged women to maintain an active lifestyle or start engaging in more physical activity,
Our research indicates that in order to maintain a good quality of life related to physical health in one's early 70s, it may be possible to compensate for a lack of earlier physical activity by becoming active around the age of 55.
There may be the possibility of 'rewinding' one's biological age through adjustments in mid-life, such as engaging in regular physical activity.
'You can derive significant health benefits from exercising as long as possible, even if you begin regular exercise in your mid-50s; it's also not too late in life to do so.'
The results were published in Plos Medicine.
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