Paluch Leads Effort to Update the American Heart Association Statement on the Benefits of Resistance Exercise Training

Research
Amanda Paluch
Amanda Paluch

Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Amanda Paluch is the lead author of a newly issued update to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association regarding resistance exercise training and cardiovascular disease. The statement appeared online in December 2023 ahead of print in the January 16, 2024 issue of Circulation.

The scientific statement – first issued by the American Heart Association in 2007 – highlights the positive physiological and clinical benefits of resistance training to buffer against cardiovascular disease and other risk factors. Paluch and colleagues note that “since 2007, accumulating evidence suggests resistance training is a safe and effective approach for improving cardiovascular health in adults with and without cardiovascular disease.” 

The benefits of resistance training are plentiful, with evidence indicating adults who participate in it having ~15% lower risk of all-cause mortality and 17% lower risk of cardiovascular disease compared with adults who did not.

The authors’ key findings indicate:

  • Resistance training provides significant health benefits related to cardiovascular disease risk factors. It improves blood pressure, glycemia, lipid profiles, and body composition, particularly benefiting older adults and those with elevated cardiometabolic risk.
  • Resistance training has positive effects on non-traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as cardiorespiratory fitness, endothelial function, and psychological well-being.
  • Combining resistance training with aerobic training may offer more benefit in reducing certain cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia, compared to resistance training or aerobic training alone.

In a primer on the “Top Things to Know” about their statement, Paluch also notes that:

  • Resistance training is beneficial for cardiometabolic health and benefits a wide range of populations beyond those at risk for cardiovascular disease. It offers tailored health benefits for specific populations including pregnant and postpartum women, older adults, individuals with heart failure, peripheral artery disease, HIV, Alzheimer's Disease, and chronic kidney disease. These benefits encompass improvements in muscular strength, body composition, cardiovascular risk factors, and functional capacity.
  • Resistance training regimens can be simple and do not require a lot of time. They can involve free weights, body weight exercises, machine weights, and resistance bands. Body weight training can be equally effective as training with weights or machines. For apparently healthy adults, a regimen of 8 to 10 different exercises involving major muscle groups, performed in 1 to 3 sets of moderate intensity loads (allowing 8 to 12 repetitions per set) at least two times a week, is effective for achieving both muscular and cardiovascular benefits.

One key finding in the statement is that resistance training participation is low and a focus on promotion strategies is needed. The authors note that just “30 to 60 minutes per week of resistance training is associated with the maximum risk reduction for all-cause mortality and incident cardiovascular disease.” However, “despite these well-documented benefits, only 28% of US adults report participating in 2 days per week of resistance training as recommended by the 2018 Federal Physical Activity Guidelines.” 

To promote resistance training, the authors recommend addressing barriers like equipment availability, perceived complexity, and how to safely and effectively perform resistance training. They also note that disparities exist in resistance training participation across demographic groups, with older individuals, females, non-white populations, and those with lower socioeconomic status being less likely to engage in it. Tailoring resistance training promotion strategies to specific populations and considering socio-ecological factors can help address these disparities and improve resistance training participation rates.

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