长寿没有单一神奇动作：力量训练这样练才对

November 3, 2026

A few months ago, I had never so much as lifted a barbell—let alone thought about the exercises for longevity. However, during a stay at Buchinger Wilhelmi Clinic, I attended a life-changing lecture by Felipe Isidro, professor of physical education and CEO of Physical Exercise & Health Consulting. That was the day everything changed.

“Who here works out?” Isidro started. “When I say ‘work out,’ I don’t mean normal physical activities like walking, climbing stairs, and carrying shopping bags. I mean ‘exercise,’ which is movement that is both planned and scheduled. I ask, because 7 out of 10 people don’t: that’s 70% of the population.”

Of course, any physical activity is better than none. “But you don’t get the same benefits as with exercise,” Isidro explained. “The ideal, instead, is to combine both—to move more on a daily basis and to set aside specific time for training. In a society that invites us to move less and less with cars, elevators, and escalators, the objective should be to exercise—and, especially, to do strength training.”

Key Takeaways

• Exercising for longevity rather than weight loss will be more beneficial in the long run.
• Strength training, walking, and racquet sports are some of the anti-aging exercises you can incorporate into your routine.

Training for Longevity, Not Weight Loss

Up until then, I had never thought of the true importance of exercise: I’d only thought of it as a means to an end—to lose weight and, ideally, to look better in my clothes. Although it is true that exercise can help on both accounts, Isidro allowed me to see that neither of those are as important as keeping the body’s muscles and mitochondria healthy for as long as possible. “The mitochondria are like little batteries that produce the energy that impact vitality,” Isidro explained. “When the mitochondria work well, we feel strong; when they deteriorate, we feel fatigued. It’s also difficult to burn fat, even when we diet. Fat does not only accumulate under the skin, but also in organs, viscera, and even in the muscle itself.”

Here, there is no miracle pill—the only “medicine” proven to improve mitochondrial function is exercise, and especially strength training. Just as a cell phone battery lasts for hours when it’s new but loses its ability to hold a charge, the same thing happens with mitochondria—as we age, we may wake up with energy, but feel exhausted by mid-morning. Thus, we must keep our mitochondria as healthy as possible.

Fast Twitch Fibers and Slow Twitch Fibers

Within the muscle there are slow twitch fibers and fast twitch fibers— slow twitch fibers are responsible for prolonged efforts such as walking; fast twitch fibers are essential for power and speed.

As we age, fast twitch fibers are the first to decline. “Walking improves endurance, but it doesn’t stop the loss of fast twitch fibers. If you don’t train strength, you become sluggish. We see it in older people, who end up walking in short steps because they have lost those fibers. Strength training is the only way to keep them,” Isidro points out. “We gain muscle until the age of 25, maintain it until the age of 35 and, from then on, we start to lose it slowly, accelerating from the age of 50, and even more at the age of 65. There are cases of people in their 70s who maintain the strength of someone sedentary in their 40s or 50s thanks to daily training, proving that this habit can subtract up to 20 years from biological age.”

After all, what you don’t use, you lose. That goes for muscle—but also for bones, the respiratory system, and the pelvic floor. Regular exercise also improves the non-REM phase (deep sleep in which the eyes do not move), and that also decreases with age. Having longer non-REM phases is related to gradual and healthy aging. “Strength training is an investment in health for the future,” Isidro says. “It reduces anxiety and it makes us feel better at all levels. In reality, a healthy body is a perfect body.”

The Right Amount of Strength Training

While water is essential for our hydration, too much of it can cause us to drown. Strength training is similar: the proper dosage is key. It’s not about doing it in excess; it’s about doing it right. The right dose, says Isidro, means few repetitions, lots of recovery time, and, above all, not looking to fatigue. “Many people think that, if they don’t get tired, they haven’t trained properly. It’s actually just the opposite. In strength, we’re not looking to exhaust ourselves, we’re looking for quality.” To that end, here are seven points to keep in mind in order to strength train properly, no matter your age or fitness level.

Increase the Frequency Slowly

The minimum for adaptation is two days a week, although the ideal scenario would be to progress to three or four with breaks in between—one day on, one day off. You should also do strength before endurance; if you do both on the same day, it’s best to finish with cardio.

Start with the Legs

If you’re new to working out, it’s best to focus on the legs. They are the largest reservoir of muscle mass in the body and also the quickest to deteriorate. In addition, the legs contain a lot of fast twitch fibers, so training them is vital.

Prioritize Intensity Over Reps

Do reps at a high intensity (quickly) to work the fast twitch fibers. It is recommended to do a few repetitions—half or less of the maximum you can do—to avoid fatigue. “The key is speed and intensity, because that’s what activates the fast fibers through the nervous system,” says Isidro.

Incorporate Rest

Give yourself plenty of time to rest between sets. At minimum, rest time should be one minute, but two or three minutes between exercises is even better. “You’re fully recovered when you can speak and sing, not just utter and grunt monosyllables,” says Isidro.

Avoid Fatigue

“It is essential that the exercise be non-exhausting or fatiguing. When you fatigue, you’re working the slow twitch fiber and continuing to lose fast twitch fibers,” says Isidro. “It’s better to do a few exercises well and repeat them a couple of times. Stop before fatigue sets in.”

Start small

Start with short workout sessions that last five to 15 minutes. Do them in circuit format, alternating exercises with breaks. “We all have 10 minutes a day if we prioritize. Forget your previous experience—many of us think that exercise should be tiring and painful to work. If we do less, we enjoy it more and see the benefits, creating a positive ripple effect.”

Breathe right

Working the respiratory muscles is also essential, because it improves recovery and endurance. Take long, full breaths, breathing into the diaphragm.

When, Where, and How

According to Isidro, the best time to exercise is in the morning. “This stimulates the sympathetic system early, which makes it easier for the parasympathetic system to be stimulated in the evening, improving sleep.” If possible, exercise outdoors, because contact with nature and socialization have a direct effect on health.

You don’t need a full gym to get the benefits. Working out with your own body weight can be really effective. “The important thing is that the exercises are adapted to your fitness level so that you can repeat and maintain them over time,” Isidro says. “And if you can do them in a group or with friends, even better. Socializing motivates, engages, and, as studies show, lengthens life.”

How to Test Your Muscle Function

There are several simple tests that can be done at home in order to check our current strength level and to show us where we may need to improve. “The important thing about these tests is not only to know where we are, but also to measure how we are progressing,” notes Isidro. “Sometimes the change is perceived in how we feel, but other times we need objective data, and these are very simple tools that allow us to tangibly see how strength training is helping us improve.” Below, some of those tests:

Chair test

One useful test is to stand up and sit down five times as fast as possible using just your legs—all you need is a chair and a stopwatch. This test measures the strength of the legs, which is where we have the most muscle and, at the same time, where we usually lose muscle first.

Stork test

This one combines strength and balance. It involves standing on the non-dominant leg and lifting the other leg. The goal is to maintain posture without using the arms. In people under 50 years of age, it is done with eyes closed, and in older people, with eyes open to prevent falls. The ideal is to balance for at least 45 seconds.

Six-minute endurance test

The six-minute endurance test involves walking as fast as possible for six minutes. Walking less than 500 meters indicates poor cardiorespiratory fitness; walking between 500 and 700 meters is acceptable; walking more than 700 is excellent.

Other Exercises to Consider

Shawn G. Anthony, MD, orthopedic sports medicine surgeon and associate system chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai, says that almost every form of movement will help with longevity and has some value. But you shouldn’t rely on just one type of exercise to do everything. “There is no single longevity exercise,” Dr. Anthony says. “The goal is to build cardiovascular fitness and strength while preserving the ability to move well and remain active over time.”

He goes on to explain that the strongest evidence for longevity is combining aerobic exercise with resistance training. Think brisk walking, running, cycling, swimming, or sports with free weights, resistance bands or body weight. With that in mind, here are some other exercises to consider:

Walking

Walking is one of the easiest exercises you can incorporate to daily life, and is backed up by science. “It is accessible, low impact, and easy to sustain, and meaningful health benefits occur well below 10,000 steps per day,” Dr. Anthony agrees. “There is also good evidence that walking after a meal can reduce the rise in blood glucose that follows eating, so even a brief post-meal walk can be a useful way to incorporate more movement into the day and improve metabolic health.”

He says that weighted walking can help. And while trendy walking exercises such as Tai Chi walking and lymphatic walking come with limited research in regards to longevity, anything that gets you moving is beneficial.

Tennis & Other Racquet Sports

Picking up a new sport like tennis isn’t easy in the sense that you’ll get the hang of it in one (or even several) tries. But if you’re not trying to be next Serena and just doing it for fun, it can be a form of exercise you look forward to. Dr. Anthony adds that sports can be especially useful because you train a lot of things at once, and one of the best examples is tennis. “It combines aerobic conditioning with bursts of higher-intensity movement, changes of direction, coordination, reaction time, and a social component,” he says. “Studies of racquet sports have reported favorable associations with longevity.”

Pilates, HIIT, & Other “Trendy” Workouts

Yes, these workouts are hard. But finding a workout that you like and want to stick to will make it easy for you to stick to your longevity goals. Dr. Anthony says that trendy workouts such as Pilates, HIIT, and Zone 2 training can all be useful as long as the underlying training makes sense. You want to identify your fitness goals and find an exercise that will help you meet them safely and consistently. “If a trendy workout motivates someone to exercise regularly, that has real value,” he says. “What matters more than the label is whether the workout contributes to a well-rounded and sustainable exercise program.”

What to Avoid

Dr. Anthony says to avoid anything that will repeatedly cause joint pain, tendon problems, or overuse injuries. “[That] is not a successful longevity strategy,” he says. “The goal is to increase physical capacity without repeatedly exceeding what the body can recover from.”

He also says that our fitness and strength are built up over time in our 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s. So while it would be ideal to not wait until later in adulthood to begin thinking about longevity, starting now is still better than later (or never).

And just remember that the foundation of longevity remains regular aerobic exercise, resistance training, and daily movement. Whatever will get you those three will be the best workout for you. “Longevity requires durability,” he says. “Ultimately, the goal is to preserve enough physical capacity to keep running, skiing, playing tennis, traveling, and doing activities that matter to you 20 or 30 years from now.”

Meet the Experts

• Felipe Isidro, professor of physical education and CEO of Physical Exercise & Health Consulting
• Shawn G. Anthony, MD, orthopedic sports medicine surgeon and associate system chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai

Have a beauty or wellness trend you're curious about? We want to know! Send Vogue’s senior beauty & wellness editor an email at beauty@vogue.com.

• Have a beauty or wellness trend you’re curious about? We want to know! Email Margaux at beauty@vogue.com.

• The Vogue Runway app has expanded! Update to the latest version to see all Vogue content, as well as new features like our Runway Genius quiz, Group Chats, and posts from Vogue contributors.

Audrey Noble is a contributing writer at Vogue, covering all things beauty and wellness. As someone who is admittedly chronically online, she loves to debunk the never-ending slew of TikTok skin trends (do not put beef tallow on your face) and bond with celebrities over astrology and their biggest beauty ... Read More