Aerobic exercise is a key component of any fitness routine, offering benefits for both physical and mental health, experts say. Research shows that adults who engage in moderate-intensity exercise can extend their lifespan by an average of seven years.
And the results vary by activity, with studies revealing that playing tennis can add up to 9.7 years to your life. Despite this, many Brits aren’t meeting the recommended weekly amount of physical activity. Natasha Tavares, certified personal trainer at Muscle Booster, said: “Tennis is a high-intensity sport that is excellent for cardiovascular health. It also helps to build strength, particularly grip strength, which is essentially the amount of force you can exert when squeezing an object with your hand. In this case, the tennis racket handle.
“Grip strength has been linked with lifespan and overall health, particularly in older adults, mainly because it serves as a good indicator of your overall strength, which plays a key role in adults’ wellbeing as they age. Maintaining strength can help prevent physical decline and support continued mobility.”
When looking to extend your lifespan, it can help to incorporate both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities into your workout routine, or activities that can act as both, alongside other lifestyle habits. Natasha said: “The rewards of tennis are endless, you’re benefiting from being active and from spending time with friends, all of which can help with your short and long-term health.
“As you age, it becomes even more important to continue to build strength, as it helps with mobility and prevents health issues such as sarcopenia, which involves the loss of muscle mass and strength. Playing tennis can support your muscle strengthening routine, as it’s a fast-paced sport that requires dynamic movements. It also helps promote flexibility, due to the range of motion in a match.”
Improves cardiovascular health
“Incorporating aerobic exercise into your routine helps strengthen your heart, which plays a vital role in your physical health, circulating blood, and oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. It keeps your blood pressure down by improving the efficiency of the cardiovascular system.”
Keeps arteries clear
“Tennis can help raise good high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and lower ‘bad’ low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which can lead to less build of plaques in your arteries, and decrease your risk of heart disease.”
What are some alternatives to tennis?
“Tennis isn’t for everyone, but luckily, there are plenty of other racket sports to try, for example, badminton. There are some similarities between badminton and tennis as they are both racket sports played on courts. But a tennis court is bigger, you use a shuttlecock in badminton, and the rackets are different shapes.
“Tennis is generally considered to need more endurance and power, due to the short bursts of energy required repeatedly per match. Although, badminton has been shown to significantly improve your life longevity by 6.2 years.
“Padel has recently gained popularity in the UK, which combines elements of squash and tennis, using a smaller racket and an enclosed court rather than an open one. Squash is another alternative that you can play, the difference being rather than using a net, you hit the ball against the ball.”
When should I be playing tennis?
“Tennis counts toward your 75 minutes of high-intensity aerobic exercise a week, which can either be split into sessions across the week, for example, 25 minutes three times a week or 20 minutes four times a week. Alternatively, you could play one game whilst also enjoying other types of exercise. Matches can either be played in doubles or singles.”
