Sports Medicine — Weekly Evidence Brief

Physical activity offers extensive benefits across diverse populations, ranging from enhancing recovery in athletes to improving health outcomes in aging individuals and chronic conditions. For instance, a combined resistance training and minimal high-intensity interval training (HIIT) program significantly improves muscular, aerobic, and metabolic health, alongside regulating acute inflammatory responses in older adults 1. Engaging in 12 months of moderate-to-vigorous aerobic exercise has been shown to reduce "brain-predicted age difference" in early-to-midlife adults 2. Furthermore, increased physical fitness is associated with a reduced burden of adverse health outcomes in long-term childhood cancer survivors 3. Accelerometer-measured physical activity across all intensities, including light, moderate, and vigorous, is associated with a reduced risk of depression, with total volume being more important than intensity up to a certain threshold 4.

Beyond physical health, exercise offers significant advantages for mental and neurological well-being. A 12-week running intervention demonstrated improvements in overall mental health symptoms, including depression and stress, and reduced pain catastrophizing in adults with chronic low back pain 5. Aerobic running performed after fear extinction training also significantly reduced dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activation during fear recall and improved the discrimination of threat and safe cues compared to reading rest, suggesting potential benefits for anxiety-related disorders 6. Early post-stroke, cardiorespiratory exercise during inpatient rehabilitation is associated with improved functional independence, ambulation, and motor recovery 7.

Specific exercise modalities and strategies can optimize outcomes for various individuals. Repeated ischemic preconditioning (R-IPC) has been shown to significantly enhance recovery, reduce inflammation, and improve explosive power and strength following high-intensity training 8. When it comes to strength training, isometric resistance training is significantly more effective at improving combined isometric and isokinetic strength compared to dynamic resistance training 9. For older adults, app-based fitness programs can specifically improve self-perceived ability to perform daily activities like climbing stairs with carrying loads and lifting groceries 10. In young people with disability, a community-based physical activity intervention increased participation attendance and time spent in physical activities 11.

Understanding risk factors is crucial for injury prevention in physically demanding activities. For instance, specific modifiable risk factors and mechanisms contributing to tackle-related injuries and concussions in rugby have been identified, with  training and  coach/player education deemed highly feasible intervention strategies 12. Similarly, in military combatives, females, individuals with higher psychological distress, poorer balance, and a history of headaches had increased odds of concussion, while participation in high-contact varsity sports was protective 13. Hamstring injuries in soccer players negatively impact physical performance, particularly high-speed running, which needs to be considered in return-to-play protocols 14.