If you think running a marathon is the quickest ticket to a rock-hard body, I-Min Lee, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, has news for you: That classic feat isn’t as good for your body as it seems.
Instead of long-distance running, which can be hard on your joints and digestive system, Lee recommends five other types of workouts. They generate benefits that range from weight loss and muscle building to protecting your heart and brain and strengthening your bones.
The findings are detailed in a Harvard Medical School health report called “Starting to Exercise” which recommends some of the best exercises for your body.
“You might call swimming the perfect workout,” write the authors of the Harvard Healthbeat newsletter, which summarizes the report’s key takeaways and gives insight from Lee.
In addition to working nearly every muscle in your body, swimming can raise your heart rate to improve heart health and protect the brain from age-related decline. Plus, being afloat makes this type of exercise nearly strain-free. “Swimming is good for individuals with arthritis because it’s less weight-bearing,” Lee said in the newsletter.
