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Keep your cardio routine, but don’t skip the weights.

Reviewed by Dietitian Jessica Ball, M.S., RD

Key Points

• Experts recommend you engage in both aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercise each week.
• Individuals who incorporate both types of exercise may have a lower type 2 diabetes risk.
• Moving throughout the day and performing body weight exercises are good places to start.

If you’ve ever gone to the gym to exercise, chances are you’ve witnessed firsthand the divide between those doing cardio and those doing strength training. On one side of the gym, you have the aerobic exercisers logging miles on the treadmill, shuffling on the elliptical or riding a stationary bike. On the other, you’ve got resistance trainers repping out chest presses, dropping into weighted squats or curling dumbbells into biceps curls.

And while neither the cardio lovers nor the strength trainers are right or wrong, there can seem to be a divide between the two. That’s despite recommendations that adults should get both types of exercise each week—at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, plus two days of muscle-strengthening activity. Research also suggests that engaging in both types of physical activity is associated with a lower risk of several chronic conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer.

Now, new research adds to the case for incorporating both aerobic exercise and resistance training. A recent study published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport found that people who regularly engaged in both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities had a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes along with several chronic conditions.

How Was the Study Conducted?

Researchers gathered data for this study from the HABITAT (How Areas in Brisbane Influence Health and AcTivity) cohort, a large study of more than 11,000 adults ages 40 to 65 living in Brisbane, Australia. The cohort followed participants over nearly a decade, with surveys conducted in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2016.

For this analysis, researchers used a sample size of about 8,000 individuals from the HABITAT cohort. The researchers looked at participants’ physical activity and health history. Participants reported their physical activity by tracking how much time they spent walking and doing moderate- and vigorous-intensity physical activity, as well as how often they participated in muscle-strengthening activities like weight lifting and other exercises designed to increase strength.

Researchers then grouped participants into categories based on whether they met the recommended amount of aerobic activity, muscle-strengthening activity, both or neither. The recommended amount of aerobic activity was at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week while the recommendation for muscle-strengthening exercise was at least two days per week.

In addition to tracking their physical activity, participants also reported whether they had been diagnosed with long-term health conditions, defined as conditions lasting six months or longer. For this study, researchers were specifically interested in the development of diabetes (both type 1 and type 2), cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and cancer.

Overall, the aim of this study was to investigate the combined effects of meeting both aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercise guidelines and whether that had an impact on the incidence of those four major chronic diseases.

What Did the Study Find?

Researchers found that meeting both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity guidelines was associated with about 50% lower odds of developing type 2 diabetes. There was also a potential association with lower risk of developing high blood pressure, cancer and heart disease, though those findings were less consistent.

In terms of the types of physical activity participants engaged in, the results looked like this:

• Aerobic activity only: About 50% of participants met only the aerobic activity guideline from 2007 to 2011, falling to about 40% from 2011 to 2016.
• Muscle-strengthening activity only: About 1% of participants met only the muscle-strengthening guideline throughout the study period.
• Both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity: About 12% met both guidelines from 2007 to 2011, increasing to about 23% from 2011 to 2016.
• Neither activity guideline: About 37% of participants met neither guideline throughout the study period.

Together, these numbers highlight how much more common aerobic activity was than strength training among participants. Although the percentage meeting both guidelines increased over time, muscle-strengthening activity alone remained uncommon.

The strongest and most consistent finding was the association between meeting both physical activity guidelines and lower odds of developing type 2 diabetes. Some findings also pointed to lower odds of heart disease, cancer and high blood pressure among participants who met one or both activity recommendations, but those associations were less consistent.

How Does This Apply to Real Life?

Researchers emphasized the importance of promoting both types of activity in public health initiatives to highlight the value of this combined approach for chronic disease prevention. The study also highlights a potential gap in physical activity as aerobic activity was much more common than muscle-strengthening activity among participants. Making sure people understand that resistance training is an important part of a health-promoting exercise routine could help close that gap.

It’s probably no surprise that regular physical activity is associated with better health outcomes and a lower risk of developing certain chronic conditions like type 2 diabetes. This study adds to a growing body of evidence that both aerobic activity and muscle-strengthening exercise have a place in a well-rounded physical activity routine. While it may feel overwhelming to incorporate both types of exercise into your schedule, we’ve rounded up a few simple strategies to help you bring more movement into your week in an approachable, sustainable way.

• Break up movement throughout the day. It’s not necessary to get all your aerobic activity from one long sweat sesh. Instead, consider things like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, going for a 20-minute walk during lunch or squeezing in a few jumping jacks between meetings.
• Start with body weight exercises. You don’t need a home gym–or a gym membership–to strength train. Exercises like squats, lunges, pushups and planks can help build muscle using your own body weight.
• Build a routine you can maintain. Schedule workouts at times that realistically fit into your week. Staying consistent is the most important.
• Make it social. Take a workout class with a friend, join a walking group or find a strength-training buddy. Having someone to move with can make physical activity more enjoyable and provide extra motivation.
• Don’t forget recovery. More exercise isn’t necessarily better. Give your muscles time to recover between aerobic and strength-training sessions, especially when you’re starting a new routine.

Our Expert Take

The results from a recent study published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport suggest that meeting both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity guidelines may be particularly beneficial for type 2 diabetes prevention. While the study found some associations between physical activity and lower odds of heart disease, high blood pressure and cancer, those findings were less consistent. That said, these findings add to a growing body of research that suggests that the combination of both activity types is important in chronic disease prevention.