If you’re looking to try a new sport after the Olympics, know that some sports are better for your health than others. Swimming is an activity that’s praised for its health benefits, but it’s actually another dry-land sport that can best help you live a long, healthy life.

Why this racket sport is synonymous with longevity

Racquet sports often top researchers’ lists when it comes to increasing life expectancy. Consider Ni Xia Lian, the 61-year-old Chinese table tennis player who represented Luxembourg at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She is now officially the oldest person to win a table tennis match at an Olympic Games – another highlight of a successful career spanning 40 years. In 1983, she won gold medals in both the team and mixed doubles at the World Table Tennis Championships and hasn’t lost any of her athletic prowess since. Zhiying Zeng, another table tennis player, is further living proof that racquet sports produce athletes who compete well into old age – she competed in her first Olympics this year at the age of 58.

Numerous studies have highlighted the positive effects of racquet sports, particularly in terms of life expectancy. A study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine followed more than 80,000 adults over a nine-year period and compared the effects of different sporting activities on the participants’ health. The authors concluded that people who regularly participated in racquet sports had a 47 percent lower risk of all-cause mortality than people who did not exercise. This was almost 20 percent higher than swimming, which came in second with a 28 percent reduction in all-cause mortality. Racquet sports also reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke and heart attack by 56 percent, while swimming reduced the risk by 41 percent and aerobic exercise reduced the risk by 36 percent.

Tennis increases life expectancy by almost 10 years

Of all the racket sports, tennis is the best sport – those who play it can expect to increase their life expectancy by an average of almost 10 years. In second place is badminton, which increases life expectancy by 6.2 years, followed by football, cycling and swimming with an average of 4.7, 3.7 and 3.4 years respectively.

What are the benefits of racket sports?

All racquet sports are excellent for cardiovascular health as they provide both aerobic and anaerobic exercise, strengthening players’ ability to stay active and moving for longer periods of time and also to do shorter, more intense bursts, which is extremely beneficial for both the heart and blood vessels.

In addition to the cardiovascular benefits, tennis, squash and table tennis also improve the cognitive health of players. They require physical and mental coordination and improve balance and agility, reflexes, concentration and mental alertness. At the same time, they work all the muscles of the body: thighs, back, shoulders, arms, abdomen and more, which means muscle mass and strength are maintained for longer. Not to mention that you expend a lot of energy while playing, which helps with weight control.

Another health benefit? Racquet sports are social activities that are incredibly important to our well-being. Longevity expert Dan Buettner, who has extensively studied the world’s blue zones, found that human contact, community and social interaction are key to longevity.