Universität zu Köln

Leyk, Dieter, Ruether, Thomas, Wunderlich, Max, Sievert, Alexander, Essfeld, Dieter, Witzki, Alexander, Erley, Oliver, Kuechmeister, Gerd, Piekarski, Claus and Loellgen, Herbert (2010). Physical Performance in Middle Age and Old Age Good News for Our Sedentary and Aging Society. Dtsch. Arztebl. Int., 107 (46). S. 809 - 817. COLOGNE: DEUTSCHER AERZTE-VERLAG GMBH. ISSN 1866-0452

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

Background: Physical performance often declines in middle age, but it is unclear to what extent this is due to biological aging. It can be difficult to determine whether such physical changes are truly age-related, as they might alternatively be explained as the negative consequences of a sedentary lifestyle. Methods: We assessed the endurance of a physically active subgroup of the population by performing an age-and sex-stratified analysis of over 900 000 running times of marathon and half-marathon participants aged 20 to 79. We also analyzed the responses of 13 171 marathon and half-marathon runners to a questionnaire about sports, lifestyle, and health. Results: No significant age-related decline in performance appears before age 55. Moreover, only a moderate decline is seen thereafter; in fact, 25% of the 65- to 69-year-old runners were faster than 50% of the 20- to 54-year-old runners. Our survey also revealed that more than 25% of the 50- to 69-year-old runners had started their marathon training only in the past 5 years. Conclusion: Performance losses in middle age are mainly due to a sedentary lifestyle, rather than biological aging. The large contingent of older newcomers among marathon runners demonstrates that, even at an advanced age, non-athletes can achieve high levels of performance through regular training.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Leyk, Dieter UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Ruether, Thomas UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Wunderlich, Max UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Sievert, Alexander UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Essfeld, Dieter UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Witzki, Alexander UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Erley, Oliver UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Kuechmeister, Gerd UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Piekarski, Claus UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Loellgen, Herbert UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-492417
DOI:	10.3238/arztebl.2010.0809
Journal or Publication Title:	Dtsch. Arztebl. Int.
Volume:	107
Number:	46
Page Range:	S. 809 - 817
Date:	2010
Publisher:	DEUTSCHER AERZTE-VERLAG GMBH
Place of Publication:	COLOGNE
ISSN:	1866-0452
Language:	English
Faculty:	Unspecified
Divisions:	Unspecified
Subjects:	no entry
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language MARATHON; MORTALITY; MEN; FITNESS; TIME Multiple languages Medicine, General & Internal Multiple languages
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/49241