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Bed-Ridden Can Stay Fit, NASA Finds

Irene Klotz, Discovery News

Photos

Fitness While Flat

Nov. 19, 2007 -- At long last, an exercise program that even the couchiest of potatoes can rally around. A NASA study to assess effective exercise regimes for astronauts living without gravity has found that even the bed-bound can keep muscle from atrophying with a combination of aerobic and strength training workouts.

Over a period of 60 days, 24 women voluntarily confined themselves to bed. One-third did not exercise and did not have a special diet. Another third didn't exercise but ate a high-protein nutritional supplement. The last group exercised two or three days a week -- all without leaving their beds. The workouts consisted of 40 to 50 minutes of aerobic exercises and 20 minutes of strength training.

"The difference in the physical condition among the three groups was undeniable," said Scott Trappe, director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind.

Women who didn't exercise lost nearly half their strength after two months. Women who didn't exercise and were on the high-protein diet fared even worse. But the women who exercised maintained their strength, the study found.

"It really took very little exercise to make an impact," said Trappe, who co-authored a paper about the research in last month's issue of Journal of Applied Physiology.

"The total time spent exercising was less than two percent of the time they spent in bed during the entire 60-day period. In the end, a little bit of intense exercise goes a long way."

Astronauts living on the International Space Station typically spend three hours a day exercising on a zero-gravity stationary bike or a treadmill.

For the study, the volunteers used a flywheel device similar to a leg press machine to work their calf and thigh muscles. They also used a vertical treadmill.

Though men and women have been flying in space for decades, NASA is just beginning to look at gender differences in how people adapt to weightlessness. The research also has implications for woman confined to bed rest due to illness, injury or pregnancy complications.

"Until we completed this study, we had no solid research on how women would adapt to long durations in space," Trappe said. "This information should have a dramatic impact for NASA in the coming years."