Lack of exercise is called a disease

The more you use a machine, the closer it is to wearing out. The opposite is true of the human body, which gets better and stronger with use. But inactive people may need to "train to start training."

Lack of exercise is "considered a disease itself," says Dr. Max Testa, sports medicine researcher at The Orthopedic Specialty Hospital. "A lot of problems" that are expensive and cause poor quality of life are linked to inactivity, including metabolic disease, diabetes, cardiovascular problems and others.

Testa and five-time Olympic gold medalist Dr. Eric Heiden, speedskater turned orthopedic surgeon, also with TOSH, will be featured on today's Deseret Morning News/Intermountain Healthcare Hotline. From 10 a.m. to noon they'll take phoned-in questions about sports medicine, injury prevention and orthopedic surgery.

Testa says people don't realize they actually get stronger between workouts, so a recovery period is important when you're exercising. "If you keep putting water on the best flower in your garden, you'll kill it," he says. The body feels stress of exercise at different levels, then makes changes "in order to suffer less," he says. "I feel stress and don't want to, so I will make the heart and muscles stronger," is how he describes the body's viewpoint.

Some of the positive changes may take awhile to see, but usually by 12-16 weeks, improvements are readily visible. The heart is stronger, so it can pump more blood per minute. A normal person who's exercising pumps 15 liters of blood a minute. A top athlete can pump 40. At rest, both pump 5 liters. Exercise doesn't change lung size but improves lung function. And blood gets thinner, so cholesterol and triglycerides and glycerol drop. Add resistance training and both muscle strength and endurance get a boost.

The key to getting started, says Testa, is to know where you are so you can track improvement and stay motivated. Studies suggest that half drop out of exercise programs within three months because they don't see improvements and they lack goals.

You can establish your baseline with a mile-long walk. Check your pulse and cross-check it against your time to get a sense of how fit you are, then check it again in three weeks, when you're fitter. You can also go to a sports medicine program for a more sophisticated assessment.