This review found that muscle strength , balance , and endurance can be improved by physical activity in people aged 40 - 65 years .
There were bigger effects on muscle strength from programs that used resistance exercises , indicating the need to include a resistance training component if strength enhancement is the goal
QUESTION Can physical activity  in adults aged 40 - 65 years enhance strength and balance and prevent falls ?
Effect of two training regimens on bone mineral density in healthy perimenopausal women: a randomized controlled trial.
The aim of this r and omized controlled trial was to evaluate the effects of 18 months of calisthenics and endurance training regimens on bone mineral density ( BMD ) in perimenopausal women . Clinical ly healthy sedentary female volunteers ( n = 105 ) aged 52 - 53 years were r and omly assigned to a calisthenics ( n = 36 ) , endurance ( n = 34 ) , or control ( n = 35 ) group . The calisthenics training ( 2.6 times per week on average , 50 minutes per session ) consisted of rhythmic strength-endurance exercises by large muscle groups , and the endurance training ( 3.2 times per week , 50 minutes ) consisted of walking , stair climbing , ergometer cycling , and jogging at a controlled heart rate zone corresponding to 55 - 75 % of the individual maximal oxygen uptake ( VO2max ) of the subjects . The control subjects performed a light stretching program once a week The BMD of the lumbar spine ( L2-L4 ) , right femoral neck , calcaneus , and distal radius was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at 0 , 4 , 8 , 10 , 14 , and 18 months , and the maximal isometric strength during trunk extension and flexion , leg extension , and arm flexion and the VO2max by ergospirometry were evaluated at 0 , 8 , 10 , and 18 months of intervention . The VO2max improved significantly ( p = 0.021 ) in the endurance group . The linear trend of the femoral neck BMD in the endurance group , as determined by generalized linear models , was significantly different ( p = 0.043 ) from that of the control group , the trend indicating a maintenance of the pre study BMD . In the calisthenics group , the training effect was not significant . However , the distal radius BMD of the endurance group showed a significant negative trend ( p = 0.006 ) . These results suggest that multiexercise endurance training maintains the BMD the clinical ly important femoral neck of perimenopausal women . This form of endurance training proved also to be feasible for healthy perimenopausal women
This review found that muscle strength , balance , and endurance can be improved by physical activity in people aged 40 - 65 years .
There were bigger effects on muscle strength from programs that used resistance exercises , indicating the need to include a resistance training component if strength enhancement is the goal
QUESTION Can physical activity  in adults aged 40 - 65 years enhance strength and balance and prevent falls ?