{"id":390060,"date":"2026-04-21T07:26:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T07:26:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/390060\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T07:26:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T07:26:22","slug":"these-genes-raise-the-odds-youll-be-physically-fit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/390060\/","title":{"rendered":"These Genes Raise the Odds You’ll Be Physically Fit"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated4 min read\"Caret<\/p>\n

New research links genetic variants associated with fitness with a lower risk of developing certain diseases.<\/p>\n

These include: lower risk of stroke, lower blood pressure, and lower risk of asthma.<\/p>\n

Experts say that even if you don\u2019t have the genetic advantage for fitness, it\u2019s still worth prioritizing physical activity.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s understandably frustrating when you put in more sweat equity<\/a> at the gym than your friends, only to see the same results. New research suggests that\u2019s not in your head: There are certain genetic variants linked to being more fit, and they\u2019re also linked with a lower risk of developing a slew of diseases.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to say this upfront: The findings don\u2019t suggest that you should just give up on exercise if you suspect you\u2019re not genetically prone to being fit. But it does imply that some people may be more set up for success in the fitness department than others, which can explain how your bestie can just do a 5K with no prep work while you have to train.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the takeaway here? A study author and cardiologist explain.<\/p>\n

Meet the experts: Eleonora Fornara, RD<\/a>, lead study author, dietitian, and PhD researcher at the University Ramon Llull, Blanquerna School of Health Sciences and Cheng-Han Chen, MD<\/a>, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California.<\/p>\n

What did the study find?<\/p>\n

For the study, which was published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise<\/a>, researchers screened multiple long-term study databases for 712 health-related phenotypes. Phenotypes refer to observable characteristics of an organism, like blood pressure or height.<\/p>\n

After analyzing the data, researchers found 34 associations between genetically predicted aerobic fitness and different health outcomes. People with certain genes had a range of health perks that may give them an advantage, including a lower risk of stroke, higher heart rate variability, lower blood pressure, and lower risk of asthma. They were also more likely to have higher years of schooling than people without these genes. Higher levels of education have also been previously linked to better health outcomes.<\/a><\/p>\n

The researchers found that genes associated with \u201cbeing fitter\u201d may be linked to a lower risk of developing about 30 diseases.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know from decades of observational research that physically fit people tend to be healthier,\u201d says Eleonora Fornara, RD<\/a>, lead study author, dietitian, and PhD researcher at the University Ramon Llull, Blanquerna School of Health Sciences. \u201cMost prior studies couldn’t rule out the possibility that healthier people simply exercise more, rather than exercise making them healthier.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Fornara and her fellow researchers wanted to dive a little deeper and look at the genes that predispose people to fitness. \u201cBecause our genes are assigned at birth \u2014 before any disease develops \u2014 this method lets us make much stronger causal inferences than traditional observational studies,\u201d Fornara explains. Their study was able to provide stronger evidence of a potential causal link between being fit and a lower risk of disease and other risk factors.<\/p>\n

What does \u2018fit\u2019 mean?<\/p>\n

This study focused on cardiorespiratory fitness, which is the body\u2019s ability to respond effectively to physical effort.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis reflects how well the heart, lungs, and muscles work together during sustained exercise,\u201d Fornara says. \u201cWe didn’t study a specific sport or exercise type, but rather the underlying biological capacity to be physically fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

In general, fitness doesn\u2019t mean you have certain genes, says Cheng-Han Chen, MD<\/a>, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California. \u201cGenes probably play a part of it, but it\u2019s still only a part,\u201d he says. \u201cYou can have certain genes associated with fitness but, if you don\u2019t exercise and take advantage of your genes, you may not be fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Can you be active but \u2018unfit\u2019?<\/p>\n

Yep. \u201cPhysical activity (what you do) and physical fitness (how your body responds) are related but not identical,\u201d Fornara says. \u201cTwo people can follow the same exercise routine and end up with very different fitness levels, partly due to genetics.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Fornara stresses that activity is still crucial at baseline. \u201cBeing active still brings broad health benefits \u2014 even for those who don’t see large gains in cardiorespiratory metrics,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

How important is it to have the genes for fitness?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to read this and decide there\u2019s no point in putting in the effort at the gym anymore. But that shouldn\u2019t be the takeaway, according to Chen. \u201cWe are not at the point where we can say, \u2018If you have these genes, you will actually have better health outcomes,\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cBut what the researchers are saying is that these genes are associated with better markers of health, like heart rate variability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fornara agrees. \u201cYou don’t need to be genetically gifted,\u201d she says. \u201cCardiorespiratory fitness is a modifiable factor that improves with regular aerobic exercise\u2026anything you do to improve your fitness\u2014running, cycling, swimming, brisk walking\u2014moves you in the right direction, regardless of your genetic starting point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Overall, Chen stresses the importance of being physically active. \u201cPhysical inactivity is associated with cardiovascular disease,\u201d he says. \u201cHaving fitness genes or not does not really change that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men\u2019s Health, Women\u2019s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master\u2019s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Carina Hsieh, MPH, is the deputy features editor of Women\u2019s Health. She has more than a decade\u2019s worth of experience working in media and has covered everything from beauty, fashion, travel, lifestyle, pets, to health.<\/p>\n

She began her career as an intern in the fashion closet at Cosmopolitan where she worked her way up to Senior Sex & Relationships Editor. While covering women\u2019s health there, she discovered her passion for health service journalism and took a break to get her Masters in Public Health. Post-grad school, she worked as a freelance writer and as The Daily Beast\u2019s first Beauty, Health, and Wellness Reporter.<\/p>\n

Carina is an alum of the Fashion Institute of Technology and the Yale School of Public Health. She and her French Bulldog, Bao Bao, split their time between Brooklyn and Connecticut. She enjoys reformer Pilates, (slow) running, and smelling the fancy toiletries in boutique fitness class locker rooms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"4 min read New research links genetic variants associated with fitness with a lower risk of developing certain…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":390061,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[2115,201771,2117,565,134,201772,2462,111,139,69,158173,201770],"class_list":{"0":"post-390060","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-content-type-news","9":"tag-contentid-a6a34748-ec0d-414b-9efe-beca2529ee65","10":"tag-displaytype-standard-article","11":"tag-fitness","12":"tag-health","13":"tag-listen_time-329","14":"tag-locale-us","15":"tag-new-zealand","16":"tag-newzealand","17":"tag-nz","18":"tag-read_time-4","19":"tag-shorttitle-being-fit-could-be-in-your-genes"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390060","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=390060"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390060\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/390061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=390060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=390060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=390060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}