Experts have shared the healthy eating habits which may improve fitness as much as an additional 4,000 steps each day would.
According to scientists writing in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, switching to fruit and vegetable dense diets could offer the same effect as extra daily exercise. Specifically, they looked at how diets emphasising vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, legumes, fish and healthy fats - while limiting red meat and alcohol - improved overall fitness.
The newly published research included 2,380 individuals at an average age of 54 years old. Some 54 percent of the study participants were women.
"This study provides some of the strongest and most rigorous data thus far to support the connection that better diets may lead to higher fitness," said study author Dr. Michael Mi of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
"The improvement in fitness we observed in participants with better diets was similar to the effect of taking 4,000 more steps each day."
Participants underwent a maximum effort cardiopulmonary exercise test on a cycle ergometer to measure peak VO2 (the maximum amount of oxygen an individual can use).
The experts said that this is the gold standard assessment of fitness and indicates the amount of oxygen used during the highest possible intensity exercise.
Participants also completed the Harvard semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire to assess intake of 126 dietary items during the last year ranging from never or less than once per month to six or more servings per day.
Those who scored highly on the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI; 0 to 110) and Mediterranean-style Diet Score (MDS; 0 to 25) had a 5.2 percent and 4.5 percent greater peak VO2, respectively.
After compiling findings, the researchers stated that the fruit and veg dense Mediterranean diet would be a good place to start for those seeking fitness benefits.
Dr. Mi said: "In middle-aged adults, healthy dietary patterns were strongly and favourably associated with fitness even after taking habitual activity levels into account.
"The relationship was similar in women and men, and more pronounced in those under 54 years of age compared to older adults."
Regarding limitations, he noted: "This was an observational study and we cannot conclude that eating well causes better fitness, or exclude the possibility of a reverse relationship, i.e. that fit individuals choose to eat healthily."
The researcher concluded: "There are already many compelling health reasons to consume a high-quality diet, and we provide yet another one with its association with fitness.
"A Mediterranean-style diet with fresh, whole foods and minimal processed foods, red meat and alcohol is a great place to start."
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