Does medical doctor learn about exercise Physiology? are a special class of specialist who helps maintain, support, and restore health. Considering the fairly well-documented effects of exercise on our overall health, you might think that a significant amount of medical education would involve exercise physiology — the study of how physical activity conceivably alters bodily processes. The focus is especially important as the burden of global chronic conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, is increasing. Exercise is widely touted as an inexpensive and easy remedy, but how ready are physicians to prescribe it?

The implications of this knowledge in healthcare practice are also explored, and some possible training gaps that could potentially influence patient outcomes are discussed.

Exercise Physiology and Its Importance in Health

Exercise physiology studies how the human body responds and adjusts to physical activity, from the cardiovascular, respiratory, muscular and endocrine systems. It is basic to the science of how we can use exercise to prevent and manage illnesses.

For instance:

• Reducing chronic diseases: Regular exercise decreases the risk of developing conditions such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure. Exercise also contributes to mental health by lessening anxiety and depression.
• Rehabilitation: Regular exercise programs are vital to build back strength, mobility, and overall functionality after injuries, surgeries, or significant health events (such as a stroke).
• Chronic disease management: Patients with chronic conditions such as arthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or heart failure can benefit from exercise plans designed to their specific condition which can help improve quality of life and reduce complications.
• Preventative care: Beyond treating illness, exercise supports overall wellness, enabling people to maintain a healthy weight, strengthen bones​ and​ bolster immune function.

None of this is to say that exercise can replace conventional medicine, but given its myriad health benefits, it’s clear that exercise physiology ought to play a role in clinical practice. But this is under the assumption that medical professionals are well-trained in this regard.

Exercise Physiology and Medical Education

Does It Belong in Medical Curricula?

For one thing, the path to doctorhood is intense and spans a wide variety of biological and clinical sciences. Typical coursework involves anatomy, biochemistry, pharmacology, pathology and clinical rotations in specialties including internal medicine, pediatrics and surgery. But exercise physiology isn’t very time-consuming in most curriculums.

For instance, some schools cover physical activity and health consequences during preclinical years. You may see these in coursework like physiology or preventive medicine. For example:

• Future physicians might study the physiological changes that occur in exercise, like the increased heart rate, enhanced oxygen delivery to muscles and greater energy expenditure.
• They may also see exercise in the context of lifestyle interventions within public health or primary care modules.

But, comprehensive and specialized training in exercise physiology is relatively uncommon. In a 2015 study published in the Journal of Physical Activity & Health, researchers surveyed U.S. medical schools and found that most provided fewer than 10 hours of exercise-related training over the course of the entire program. For many medical education systems globally, the reality is probably not very different or even more restricted.

The Emphasis on Disease Versus Prevention

A major reason for this disconnect in exercise physiology education is the emphasis on the diagnosis and management of diseases rather than prevention. We are trained on pharmacological treatments and surgical interventions first and foremost—incredibly important areas, but not necessarily known to use exercise to benefit patients where they live. That information involves coordination between multiple organs and systems that work together; in light of the large amount of information that doctors have to learn, exercise physiology may appear less important than more urgent topics like cardiology or oncology.

In addition, some clinicians believe that if they ever require exercise-specific expertise, they can always consult with other professionals, such as physiotherapists (physios), exercise physiologists (eps), or kinesiologists. And while teamwork is a great way to do things, the work of the doctor who deals with the general population embarked on a running plan or starts doing high- intensity interval training doesn’t remove the need for doctors to have a working knowledge of exercise and its clinical implications.

The importance of exercise physiology in practice

While exercise physiology is not at all emphasized in medical education, it has immense relevance in day-to-day medical practice. Here is how it can directly impact doctors’ ability to care for their patients:

Patients Counseling and Change Behavior

When patients need lifestyle advice, they often turn to doctors first. Exercise is a potent health intervention, and getting patients to do so repeatedly does not come without a thorough knowledge of exercise physiology. For example, a doctor must:

• Know how much and what type of exercise to recommend for various conditions (for example, aerobic activity of moderate intensity for cardiovascular health, strength training for osteoporosis).
• Acknowledge contraindications or safety concerns (e.g., when certain exercises may aggravate the symptoms of patients who have conditions like arthritis or uncontrolled asthma).

Without appropriate training, a doctor may give a vague suggestion like “try to exercise more,” not knowing where a person might actually start. Conversely, unequivocal, evidence-based guidelines rooted in exercise physiology are more likely to effect behavioral change.

Chronic Disease Management

For patients with chronic illnesses, exercise on prescription can serve to an extent as a type of medicine. For example:

• Managing diabetes: Regular exercise reduces blood sugar and improves insulin sensitivity.
• Heart rehabilitation: Following a heart attack, structured exercise programs can help patients recover more, restore heart function, and prevent future events.
• Pain management: Gentle workouts like swimming or yoga can be a boon for chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia or osteoarthritis.

Mechanisms such as these are important for doctors to understand so that they may render care. While specialists will often improve the outcomes, the initial directions come from the physician.

Rehabilitation and Recovery

Exercise is an essential component to recovery after surgeries, injuries, or illnesses. For instance, patients get far more out of targeted strengthening exercises after knee replacement surgery. 43 In the absence of exercise physiology expertise, physicians are not well equipped to give appropriate first initial instructions or referrals.

Preventive Medicine

With lifestyle diseases especially, an old saying, really “prevention is better than cure” comes into play. But doctors trained in exercise physiology can more proactively discuss the long-term benefits of physical activity. For example, they can assist patients with a family history of cardiovascular disease integrate exercise into their lives on a regular basis, perhaps preventing a condition before it starts.

Gaps in Medical School Education and Their Implications

These characteristics are a result of limited english knowledge and confidence.

Due to a lack of training, many doctors say they are ill equipped to advise patients about exercise. Surveys show time and again that although physicians understand the importance of physical activity, they typically don’t feel comfortable prescribing exercise. This leads to missed opportunities to guide patients toward lives they value.

Reliance on Other Specialists

Not being dependent on other specialists is a gap in patient care when it comes to healthcare professionals in spite of being a team player. In other settings where physiotherapists or exercise physiologists are not easy to access, a lack of knowledge amongst doctors could lead to delayed or less than appropriate interventions.

Lost Preventive Opportunities

Not being grounded in exercise physiology may lead doctors to prioritize pharmaceutical solutions over activities that could work as well or better. This is not an academic problem — it contributes to population health by contributing to excessive use of medicines and procedures.

So, How To Bridge This Gap?

In order to better integrate exercise physiology within medical practice, the following needs to be done:

1. Curriculum Design: Focusing on areas of exercise physiology more relevant to practice in preventive medicine, chronic disease and rehabilitation.
2. CME (Continuing Medical Education): Healthcare providers can increase their knowledge in this area by offering easy-to-access evidence-based CME.
3. Interdisciplinary Training: Doctors work alongside other exercise-classifying professions such as physiotherapists and exercise physiologists, but doctors must also understand exercise in enough detail to facilitate referral and navigate inter-professional relationships.
4. Putting Doctors on a Leash A more holistic approach to patient care should be fostered by medical systems rewarding preventive spend and by training doctors in lifestyle medicine.

Final Thoughts

One of such valuable backgrounds in healthcare is exercise physiology, which is not sufficiently represent in doctors’ education. While most physicians have some sort of exposure to the topic, the depth and practicality of that information is often below the level need to ensure optimal patient care. More training in exercise physiology would give doctors the power to take a more holistic, proactive approach to treating and preventing illness.

With such important benefits of regular physical activity and disturbing rates of chronic disease on the increase, it is imperative that we focus on addressing this gap. Rather than leaving them fully in the dark, providing medical doctors with a more solid foundation on exercise physiology truly gets them ready to better guide patients on living appropriate, more active, healthier lives.

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Are medical doctors train in this field of exercise physiology?

Exercise physiology is a subject that medical doctors are exposed very little to during their training. Exercise physiology is rarely taught in its own right, although physiology, preventive medicine and public health courses may spend a few lectures discussing exercise and causes of the post-exercise effects on the body. Most studies show that medical school curricula include less than 10 hours of physical activity training during their entirety. This leaves a chasm in doctors’ knowledge in prescribing effective exercise-based interventions.

2. What is the importance of exercise physiology in healthcare?

So, exercise physiology is important in healthcare because it can describe the effects of exercise on the various systems in the body. It is important for the management of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, the design of rehabilitation after surgery or injury, as well as as a way of promoting preventive care to decrease the risk of new health problems. With knowledge of exercise physiology, healthcare professionals are able to provide individualized, evidence-based advice that benefits patient outcomes and promotes sustained health.

3. What do doctors use exercise physiology expertise for?

So they might prescribe aerobic exercise for cardiac health, strength exercise to combat osteoporosis, or gentle stretching for pain relief with arthritis, for instance. That said, while their training is broad, the lack of depth can hinder their ability to provide detailed or specific guidance, making working in concert with exercise physiologists or physical therapists common in complex cases.