“Sport is health” is a slogan known to all. And if it has long been clear that professional sports have nothing to do with health, then amateur sports were still recognized as a healing effect. But it turns out that a lot depends on how the training goes. Intense sports training not only does not strengthen the body, but, on the contrary, weakens its resistance to disease. Such a stunning conclusion was reached independently by several groups of researchers who studied the reaction of the athlete's body to enhanced training before important competitions.
Back in 1990, an experiment in which a group of American marathon runners participated showed that within a week after a two-hour run, their incidence of colds was five times higher.
The Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, published by the American College of Sports Medicine, recently published an article in which, based on observations, it was suggested that training that requires a lot of stress on the body not only contributes to the occurrence of colds and other viral diseases, but also can open the way to more serious diseases, such as cancer. One such study drew attention to the fact that so many outstanding athletes died from various diseases in their prime as a result of a weakened immune system. Researchers at the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have deduced a pattern: the more miles an athlete runs in a year, the higher his chance of getting a viral cold. At the same time, some studies indicate that the body's immune system, weakened after intense training, after a while restores resistance to disease. So, a three-hour run at a marathon pace reduces immune capabilities by 50-65%, but in 65% of runners the immune system is restored the very next day. The danger of getting sick lies in wait for the athlete during this period of time.
And one more interesting study. The scientists who conducted it say that strong physical activity makes the body consume more oxygen, this enhances oxidative processes, in other words, the aging process is activated. There is not a single example in nature when an animal unnecessarily made long runs. It is best to keep the middle ground by dedicating two to three days a week to training. Moderate activity will not allow the lymphatic system to atrophy and keep you youthful and beautiful skin.
Such research results once again confirm the well-known truth: everything is good in moderation.
