We've known for a while that exercise is good for our immune system. Active individuals are less susceptible to viral infections and inflammation. A recent study looked at how COVID-19 affected adults based on their pre-existing levels of physical activity. The study included 48,400 adults in Southern California that tested positive for COVID-19. The patients were assigned to one of three groups based on how much exercise they got each week. The first group would get 150 minutes, or more, of exercise each week. The second group was inactive and got from zero to ten minutes of exercise per week. And the last group was right in the middle getting between 11 and 149 minutes of exercise per week. Each group was then tracked based on whether they were hospitalized, admitted to the intensive care unit or died. What they found was that the individuals getting no exercise, i.e. 10 minutes or less, were 2.26 times more likely to be hospitalized compared to the group getting the most exercise. And for those in the middle group of exercise, i.e. 11-149 minutes, they were 1.89 times more likely to be hospitalized than those getting at least 150 minutes per week. So that does 150 minutes of exercise per week look like? This is 30 minutes per day on weekdays. This would be similar to going for a run over the lunch hour for half an hour. Of the 48, 440 patients that tested positive for COVID-19, only 6.4% got this much exercise. 14.4% of patients did no exercise, or up to 10 minutes, each week. This leaves about almost 80% of patients that get 11-149 minutes of exercise per week. Perhaps the most interesting finding of this study was the fact that physical inactivity was strongest risk factor with how severe COVID-19...

Back in March we returned home from a Caribbean cruise. Once we arrived back in Canada we were required to quarantine and self-isolate for 2 weeks. We were probably among the first people to do so as the Canadian government closed the border to international travel as we arrived. I remember the customs agent coming on the plane, explaining the quarantine process and duration and giving everyone a handout with the same information. I remember this agent saying we should feel lucky as were the last flight to arrive in Kelowna as the border was closed. The next two weeks were spent at home. We didn't go to work, school or out for any reason. It was kind of nice actually as we would simply text a friend or family member our grocery list and send them an email money transfer. We literally didn't even step out of the house for two weeks. And we could notice the difference this was making on our physical and mental health. I couldn't wait to get back in the gym, train and do something active. As someone who is normally active a couple weeks break from the gym probably wasn't the worst thing in the world. If I were a couple of decades older this quarantine could have been catastrophic. A new study looked at how 2 weeks of quarantine affects our health. In this study of 22 men and women, average age of 69 years, total daily steps were reduced to less than 1500 per day. Researchers looked at insulin sensitivity and muscle protein synthesis after 2 weeks of inactivity. What they found was that insulin sensitivity and muscle protein synthesis both decreased after only 2 weeks of sitting around. Leg muscle mass decreased by 4%. A key, and concerning, finding of the...