Research

Mixed

In older adults, greater leisure-time physical activity and better chair-stand physical fitness are associated with reduced leukocyte telomere length attrition over time.

For older adults, focusing on increasing leisure-time activity (like walking, gardening, or hobbies) and improving functional fitness (like the ability to stand up from a chair quickly) may help slow cellular aging. You don't need intense gym workouts; consistent, moderate leisure activity and maintaining functional strength are key metrics linked to healthier telomere dynamics.

GoodSupportsMEDIUM confidence
changes in leisure-time activity and chair test performance were each inversely associated with changes in TL... suggesting that leisure-time activity and fitness could reduce leukocyte telomere attrition among older adults.
Luísa Soares‐Miranda et al. · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · 2015

Why this rating

Large prospective cohort with repeated measures, but observational design limits causal inference; p-values are borderline (0.04-0.07).

Source

Physical Activity, Physical Fitness, and Leukocyte Telomere Length

Luísa Soares‐Miranda et al. · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · 2015

DOI 10.1249/mss.0000000000000720

cohort · n=582Cited 49×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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