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Momentum Magazine majorly screws up exercise recommendations for MSers
The US MS Society's global magazine published the article "4 tips to boost immunity" in their Fall 2021 issue. To say I was aghast does a disservice to aghastness. They quoted an exercise researcher, who gave the following head-scratching advice. It's even more head scratching after you read my response. We'll see it it makes their 2022 Winter edition in Letters. Sigh. -D
Exercise recommendation concerns, Fall 2021 issue
I have significant concerns about Alexander Ng's exercise recommendations in your Fall 2021 article 4 Tips to Boost Immunity. The professor of exercise science at Marquette University said that, "On a scale of zero to 10, where zero is being sedentary, and 10 is sprinting at full speed up a hill, he says you should be at a three or four — just starting to break a sweat. Anything more vigorous could trigger cortisol production." By that measure, outside of laughter yoga and competitive knitting, most types of popular exercise would be verboten—jogging, brisk walking, mildly peppy strolling—and forget cycling, as you'd have to pedal so leisurely you'd tip plum over without training wheels. Even more curious, in 2020, the National MS Society convened clinical and research experts in the fields of MS, exercise, rehabilitation, and physical activity to reach consensus on optimal exercise and lifestyle physical activity recommendations for individuals with multiple sclerosis—and professor Ng was among the experts with input. That panel specifically recommended high intensity exercise (up to 100% effort) for people with limited walking ability, and continued vigorous exercise for those using wheelchairs (where 70% effort is the goal). Only when a person with MS reaches an EDSS level of 9 (bedbound), do they stop promoting aerobic conditioning. I wanted to make this point clear, lest my members of ActiveMSers try using this as an excuse to slough off.
“Again, exercise is a type of stress. And when we’re stressed, we release stress hormones like cortisol that can depress the immune system,” explains Ng, who says the secret to getting a positive instead of negative immune response is to focus on exercising at a moderate instead of vigorous intensity. On a scale of zero to 10, where zero is being sedentary, and 10 is sprinting at full speed up a hill, he says you should be at a three or four — just starting to break a sweat. Anything more vigorous could trigger cortisol production.
https://momentummagazineonline.com/4...oost-immunity/
https://momentummagazineonline.com/4...oost-immunity/
I have significant concerns about Alexander Ng's exercise recommendations in your Fall 2021 article 4 Tips to Boost Immunity. The professor of exercise science at Marquette University said that, "On a scale of zero to 10, where zero is being sedentary, and 10 is sprinting at full speed up a hill, he says you should be at a three or four — just starting to break a sweat. Anything more vigorous could trigger cortisol production." By that measure, outside of laughter yoga and competitive knitting, most types of popular exercise would be verboten—jogging, brisk walking, mildly peppy strolling—and forget cycling, as you'd have to pedal so leisurely you'd tip plum over without training wheels. Even more curious, in 2020, the National MS Society convened clinical and research experts in the fields of MS, exercise, rehabilitation, and physical activity to reach consensus on optimal exercise and lifestyle physical activity recommendations for individuals with multiple sclerosis—and professor Ng was among the experts with input. That panel specifically recommended high intensity exercise (up to 100% effort) for people with limited walking ability, and continued vigorous exercise for those using wheelchairs (where 70% effort is the goal). Only when a person with MS reaches an EDSS level of 9 (bedbound), do they stop promoting aerobic conditioning. I wanted to make this point clear, lest my members of ActiveMSers try using this as an excuse to slough off.
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