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Working Out? Don't Bring Your Cellphone
Researchers say talking and texting makes workout less efficient and throws you off-balance
-- Robert Preidt
TUESDAY, Jan. 17, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Talking or texting on your cell phone may spell trouble during exercise, researchers say.
In two studies, they found that talking or texting on a cell phone during a workout lowers the intensity of your exercise session. More importantly, the study team noted that cell phone use affects balance, which can increase the risk of injuries.
"If you're talking or texting on your cell phone while you're putting in your daily steps, your attention is divided by the two tasks and that can disrupt your postural stability, and therefore, possibly predispose individuals to other greater inherent risks such as falls and musculoskeletal injuries," study author Michael Rebold, assistant professor of integrative exercise science at Hiram College in Ohio, said in a school news release.
Specifically, texting on a cell phone reduced postural stability by 45 percent. Even talking on a cell phone reduced postural stability by 19 percent.
But, if you want to pump up your workout with some tunes, go right ahead. Listening to music on a cell phone had no significant effect on postural stability during a workout, according to the study of 45 college students.
The studies about the effects of cell phone use during workouts were published in the journals Computers in Human Behavior and Performance Enhancement & Health.
The U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute offers a guide to physical activity.
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