Team sport players are as good at endurance as long-distance runners and as powerful as bodybuilders - and it is down to their blend of training, a study suggests.
The key is to combine strength and endurance training, researchers from Manchester Metropolitan University say.
Cycling, running or swimming is recommended for all-round fitness. But climbing stairs or doing chores - energetically - also works, as an alternative to the gym, they said.
The research team compared the performance of three different groups of male athletes, who trained at least three times a week in their sport. There were 87 endurance athletes, such as road cyclists, skiers and distance runners, 77 power athletes, such as sprinters, bodybuilders and throwers, and 64 team athletes involved in football, basketball and volleyball.
All were from the Lithuanian Sports University in Kaunas, Lithuania, and aged 17 to 37.
The athletes were all tested on muscle power, how high they could jump vertically from a standing position, and their ability to use oxygen during intense exercise - a measure of aerobic endurance.
The researchers discovered that team athletes had a similar aerobic stamina to endurance athletes and a similar jump range to power athletes.
