Strength and Covid-19

Our overall health is intimately connected to the health of our muscles. This is due to the immune system’s reliance on muscle to stimulate key processes necessary to maintain a healthy system. Learn more about how strength decreases the recovery time from Covid-19.

The healthier our muscles, the healthier our immune system. Health of muscles is determined by their strength, size, and ability to contract. Though, there is a point of diminishing return for muscle size – excessive muscle mass can potentially be harmful.

Recent research has shown that muscle strength and size were correlated to shorter hospital stays in people with moderate to severe SARS-Cov2. This was true even with other comorbidities such as hypertension, obesity, and type II diabetes. The authors stated that assessing muscle strength and size upon admission were predictors of the length of their hospital stay. They further stressed the value of muscle health for better recovery.

Strength training is scientifically validated for providing numerous benefits to our physical, mental, and emotional health. The mechanical loading of our muscles during strength training sessions provides a potent stimulus that triggers our bodies to increase the strength and size of muscles as well as burn fat. Even though these responses seem cosmetic on the outside, the benefits from these results provide us with a great defence on the inside.

Reference

Gil, S., Jacob Filho, W., Shinjo, S. K., Ferriolli, E., Busse, A. L., Avelino-Silva, T. J., Longobardi, I., Oliveira Júnior, G. N., Swinton, P., Gualano, B., & Roschel, H. (2021). Muscle strength and muscle mass as predictors of hospital length of stay in patients with moderate to severe COVID-19: a prospective observational study. Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcsm.12789