In 2024, Harvard Health Publishing reviewed studies on how exercise helps chronic pain, like back pain or arthritis. They looked at how activities such as walking, swimming, or yoga affect pain levels, inflammation, and mood in adults with ongoing pain, drawing on clinical trials and expert insights.

In 2025, Daniel S. Rubin and team from the University of Chicago studied 125 older adults (some frail) using a smartphone app to measure walking pace. They tracked steps per minute and physical abilities like balance and strength over 12 weeks.