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Want Strong Bones? Review Says Vigorous Sports Like Handball Beat Walking, Strength Training
- August 6, 2026
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
Light exercise might not be enough to ensure strong bones, a new evidence review says.
People who engage in high-intensity sports appear to promote the highest levels of bone growth, researchers reported recently in the journal Sports Medicine - Open.
These sports, like football and handball, were linked to about a 45% increase in blood levels of substances linked to bone formation.
On the other hand, researchers found fewer benefits from less intense activities that have been thought to encourage bone growth, including walking, step aerobics and strength training.
“The most surprising finding was that resistance training did not produce a significant effect on markers of bone metabolism, even though several professional guidelines recommend this type of exercise for maintaining bone health,” said lead researcher Viktoria Barna, a doctoral student at Semmelweis University in Budapest, Hungary.
“Likewise, low- or moderate-intensity endurance exercise, such as walking or jogging, showed no meaningful long-term effect,” Barna said in a news release.
For the new study, researchers analyzed results from 24 previous studies involving more than 1,200 healthy adults. Rather than tracking bone density, the studies measured bloodborne chemicals that indicate whether the body is actively building new bone.
These markers can reflect the effects of exercise within a few weeks, providing feedback much earlier than bone density measurements, researchers said.
“What makes our study unique is that we examined not only the type of exercise — whether endurance, resistance or combined training — but also exercise intensity, frequency and duration,” senior researcher Dr. Péter Ferdinandy said in a news release.
“Our goal was to determine which forms of exercise stimulate bone metabolism most effectively and which appear to be less beneficial from this perspective,” Ferdinandy said. He is vice-rector for science and innovations at Semmelweis University.
Results showed bone-promoting biochemicals were stimulated most effectively by activities involving explosive movements, rapid changes of direction and turning, researchers said.
This doesn’t mean that walking or low-intensity exercise is without health benefits, researchers said, only that these activities aren’t enough to best promote bone health.
“Our findings suggest that low-intensity exercise alone is not sufficient to stimulate bone metabolism," researcher Nóra Sydó, a clinical specialist at Semmelweis University, said in a news release.
"High-intensity exercise may trigger early beneficial changes in bone formation, potentially helping to slow bone loss and support healthy aging,” she added.
Before beginning any new exercise regimen, people should talk it over with their doctor, especially if they suffer from heart health problems or osteoporosis, researchers said.
More information
The Cleveland Clinic has tips for healthy bones.
SOURCE: Semmelweis University, news release, Aug. 3, 2026
