Prof. Dr. Martin Halle, head of the Chair of Preventive and Rehabilitative Sports Medicine, gave an interview on "Deutschlandfunk Nova", the young information program of Deutschlandradio, on the current activity recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the field of preventive cardiology.
Speaking to presenter Rahel Klein, the cardiologist, who holds a postdoctoral degree, said he was firmly convinced of the general recommendations, which advocate 30 minutes of physical activity a day. "Or if it's a little more intense, it can be half of that. I'm already very taken with the fact that the studies show that the body already responds to a load of ten minutes a day with a certain higher intensity, which makes you sweat easily. It shows that this relates to many aspects in the field of healthy aging or the prevention of diseases and that this is not only sufficient, but effective. We're not talking about going to the gym every day or jogging for three quarters of an hour. Ten minutes is a short session, but it shows indescribable effects."
Furthermore, the sports physician recommended a mixture of endurance sports and strength training: "Certainly, the combination is already decisive. However, there must also be an understanding that one has only a limited connection with the other. Each area in this component has its effects. I would say that endurance training is the basis and strength training comes on top. Of course, this is also age-dependent. For someone who is 75 years old, strength training is the main focus. If you're younger, endurance training clearly plays the decisive role."
Another aspect Prof. Halle talked about in the interview was sports and exercise, which he said are "clearly underrepresented" as a treatment method in classical orthodox medicine: "When I started in Munich 17 years ago, my friends said that I was crazy to do prevention or preventive cardiology and prescribe physical training to people. Why don't I continue to do cardiac catheterization and make a living at it? I wanted to do something new, I wanted to try to help build a new field of medicine, even within cardiology."
In "SZ Magazin", Prof. Halle gave exercise tips for a more active life in an interview with editor Marc Baumann, which are also feasible for absolute beginners. "Better start small: Think of exercise as a short basic activity like brushing your teeth. And don't plan a complex exercise program right away. First integrate just one exercise into your daily routine, see how that works, then add a second exercise, just like stirring oil into homemade mayonnaise: Drop by drop, slowly, successively," says Prof. Halle.
To the interview with Prof. Martin Halle on "Deutschlandfunk Nova"
To the interview with Prof. Martin Halle in "SZ Magazin"
To the homepage of the Chair of Preventive and Rehabilitative Sports Medicine
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Martin Halle
Chair of Preventive and Rehabilitative Sports Medicine
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 56 (Campus C)
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24441
e-mail: sportmed(at)mri.tum.de
Text: Romy Schwaiger
Photo: Chair of Preventive and Rehabilitative Sports Medicine