Keenan: Guys should work out in the evenings – here’s why

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While male and female bodies are the same in many ways, it’s fascinating to see how they differ. Many drugs affect men and women differently, and hormones play a role in many diseases. Now we’ve just learned a different way of falling apart. The optimal time of day to exercise appears to be different for men and women.

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Some lucky people actually look forward to their morning run, lunch break on the treadmill, or after-work workout. Like dogs walking past a butcher shop, they get bright and bold and eager. Then there are most of us who can enjoy our workouts as soon as we get started but need a nudge to get started. How about this as an incentive? You may be able to use the watch to maximize the benefits of your grunts and sweats.

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Researchers at Skidmore College in upstate New York studied exercise timing using physiological measures such as blood pressure, muscle strength and fat oxidation. They took one group of men and one group of women and randomly assigned them to be between 6:30am and 8:30am or 6:00pm and 8:00pm. The participants were all experienced athletes and non-smokers.

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The exercise schedule for everyone was the RISE protocol, which is widely considered to be pretty reasonable. It combines resistance training, interval sprints, stretching, yoga or Pilates, and aerobic endurance training. The researchers were quite flexible in how the exercise goals were met. For example, “Participants were free to choose any type of exercise (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, swimming, snowshoeing, biking, rollerblading, etc.) to complete the sprints.”

The key finding for men was that “multimodal evening exercises may be more beneficial in reducing blood pressure and fatigue, as well as maximally stimulating fat oxidation.” In contrast, morning exercises appeared to be better for women when their goal was to reduce abdominal fat and blood pressure reduce while increasing leg muscle strength. However, if the ladies want to gain strength, power and upper body endurance, then they should join the men in evening workouts.

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The researchers did not include a group that exercised over lunchtime, which was a limitation of their study. They quickly discover that no matter the time of day, the movement was beneficial to the participants. They all improved in their general health and performance.

Another recent study, this one from Denmark, suggests that some older men could add years to their lifespan by getting screened for subclinical cardiovascular disease. This would include screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm, peripheral arterial disease, and hypertension. It includes blood tests, blood pressure monitoring, and CT scans to detect hardening of the arteries.

Researchers at Odense University Hospital invited men aged 65 to 74 for this type of screening. If they found abnormalities, “prophylactic treatments, including medication and aortic surgery, were offered.” Five years later, the researchers reviewed the Danish national registers to see if the screening and interventions were helpful.

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It turned out that screening was very beneficial for men aged 65-69. It significantly lowered their risk of death, heart attack, and stroke. For them, the hazard ratio (HR) was 0.89, which can be interpreted as an 11 percent reduction in expected deaths.

While the researchers were probably hoping to find a similar result for the men aged 70 to 74, it turns out that wasn’t the case. The HR there was 1.01, which is not statistically significant. They speculate that men in the 65-69 age group showed greater benefit “due to their lower baseline use of such treatments, including antiplatelet agents and statins, and the greater prevalence of smoking and higher weight and diastolic blood pressure in these participants.”

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One might wonder why this study did not include women. In the August 27, 2022 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers led by Drs. Jes Lindholt states that they conducted a pilot study involving 1,016 women and 1,044 men and “we found a much lower prevalence of clinically significant findings at screening in women, particularly related to high coronary artery calcium scores.” They point out that others Studies will include women.

Men are known to be at higher risk of cardiovascular disease, although the gap narrows with age as the protective effects of sex hormones decrease in women. The Danish study, to the extent that it can be generalized beyond that country, suggests that more aggressive testing, particularly in men aged 65 to 69, can add years to their lives. That doesn’t mean you should rush out and grab one of those $5,000 Executive Physicals right now, but you might want to talk to your doctor. And if the doctor approves, consider a cautious exercise.

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The Skidmore study tells us that exercise is good and can be even better at certain times of the day, different for men and women. Of course, the best time to exercise is when you’re doing it consistently. You may not be as eager as the dog that walks past the butcher shop, but once you walk in the gym door, there are a multitude of benefits.

dr Tom Keenan is an award-winning journalist, speaker, professor in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at the University of Calgary, and author of the best-selling book Technocreep: The Surrender of Privacy and the Capitalization of Intimacy.