10 Benefits Of Regular Physical Activity
People generally have this idea that physical activity is good for their health. But how good, they have no idea. Regular physical activity, not just taking a casual walk but serious training can help prevent the onset of many diseases, reduce your stress level and help you to live long and healthy life.
Not only does physical activity make you look good on the outside it helps your body immensely on the inside. Physical activity reduces the risk of osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease, it reliefs anxiety and depression and it even gives boost to your mental alertness.
In 2010 a review observed more than 40 studies and found out that regular physical activity does not only keep people within a healthy weight range but it also helps to reduce their risk of developing around two dozen mental and physical health problems.
United Kingdom’s University of East Anglia did a review which showed that exercise can help to reduce the risk of some types of cancers, dementia, type II diabetes, stroke, heart disease, high blood pressure, depression and sexual problems.
Not only is physical activity good for your health it is also a great way for social interaction. Joining a tennis club or a sports team or walking in a park with friends all these ways are great to spend time with other people and get exercise at the same time.
There has been a huge shift in the manner in which the modern society works. We have now a predominantly sedentary lifestyle which was once physically active. Therefore it is more significant now than it was ever to understand the importance of physical activity and its benefits.
Here are 10 main benefits that you get from regular physical activity.
1. Reduces The Risk Of Heart Disease
Are you worried about high blood pressure or heart disease? Physical activity strengthens your heart and helps it to pump blood and deliver oxygen to your body, says the US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Some studies show that regular physical activity boosts HDL (high-density lipoprotein) which is also known as good cholesterol and decreases the unhealthy triglycerides (the fat in your blood stream). This helps the blood to flow smoothly and decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
2. Prevents Illnesses
Regular physical activity does not only helps your heart to function better and stay healthy it also prevents and reduces the risks of many diseases. Here are some of the diseases that can be prevented with regular physical activity.
- COMMON COLD: Medium intensity routine if done with consistency is proven to be a cold stopper. For example if you take a 40 minute brisk walk at least 4 times a week can reduce the number of colds you have by 25 to 50 percent and make the colds shorter by half, that you may catch, shown in studies. The activity level and number of important immune system cells which fight against the diseases is boosted by moderate exercise.
- OSTEOPOROSIS: Exercise stimulates the cells in your bones to build new bone hence prevents the thinning of bones that can ultimately lead to osteoporosis. Activities like jogging, rope jumping or playing tennis stimulate bone growth and maintain the density of the bones. Strength training exercises also stimulate bone growth, as the muscles and ligaments tug on your bones when you lift weights or do exercises which rely on your own weight to build muscles like push ups.
- CHRONIC PAIN: Chronic pain can be significantly improved by doing aerobic exercise such as brisk walking, cycling or running on the treadmill for at least 10 minutes. Most likely because it helps to release endorphins which are the natural pain relievers.
- CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME: Workouts may be exhausting in the begin but they help you feel better in the long run. A group of chronic fatigue syndrome patients were asked by British researchers to do some sort of aerobic exercise for at least 5 days in a week increasing their activity to a maximum of 30 minutes daily. These patients were twice as likely to say that they felt better and their symptoms had improved as those others who had taken relaxation or flexibility classes after a period of 3 months. After an year 75 percent of these patients who did aerobics had resumed their normal daily routine and some of them had returned to their work.
- COLON CANCER: You can reduce your risk up to 25 percent by getting regular exercise, half an hour walk 4 times in a week is all that you need. And if you eat meat regularly, cutting down red meant and processed meats like sausages, hot dogs can help as well. People who eat red meat or processed meat two times in a day most of the days in a week increase their cancer risk by 24 percent according to experts at the National Cancer Institute and ones who eat it once daily raise their risk by 20 percent.
- RELIEVES CONSTIPATION: Regular exercise reduces strain and helps to speed the passage of food through the digestive system. It can reduce the chances of becoming constipated by 40 percent for some people.
- BATTLES DIABETES: Research has shown that exercise reduces the risk of diabetes even for people who are obese or overweight. It was found out by the Diabetes Prevention Program that an exercise and weight loss program lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes by 58 percent in over a 3 year time and the volunteers of this program were just doing exercises that was equivalent of burning just an additional 593 calories.
- PARKINSON’S DISEASE: Surprising as it may be but playing Wii – the nintendo video games in which the player moves around physically as if actually playing the various sports can improve some of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. In a study 20 people who had the disease played Wii bowling, boxing and tennis for one hour, 3 days in a week, for 4 weeks. At the end of the 4 weeks the participants moved more easily , had improved fine motor skills and had more energy. The benefit may come from the release of dopamine while playing the games. Dopamine is the chemical which lacks in the brain of people suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
- PREVENTS STROKE: Exercising increases the heart rate and strengthens your heart muscles it raises your good cholesterol and lowers the bad cholesterol, making your blood flow smoothly. Studies have shown that exercising daily reduces your risk of stroke by 27 percent.
3. Depression And Anxiety
Exercise does not only benefits you physically it also helps you mentally. It helps to relieve stress , improve your mood, anxiety and depression. When you exercise the stress hormones decrease and endorphins are releases which are the body’s natural happy hormones.
It has been proven by numerous studies that people who exercise regularly experience less symptoms of anxiety and depression than those who do not engage in regular exercise. Aerobic exercises and strength training exercises both are beneficial to alleviate depression.
4. Makes You Stronger
Physical activity such as weight training and resistance training gives you strong muscles but it does a lot more than just that. It improves and increases the joint function, increases bone density and strengthens your muscles, ligaments and tendons.
5. Helps With Weight Loss
Are you trying to keep your body in shape and keep your weight healthy? Diet and physical activity both play a critical role in achieving it. Whatever you eat has calories and whatever you do uses those calories.
Calories and physical activity both go parallel, the more physical activities you do the more calories you burn. Things like taking stairs instead of the lift help you burn calories.
6. Live Longer
A research done by the Brigham and Women’s Hospital which is affiliated with Harvard and the US National Cancer Institute showed that the more you engage in physical activity the more you are likely to live longer. The study which involved more than 650,000 people in a period of more than 10 years found that 150 minutes of brisk walking in a week can increase the life expectancy by 3.4 years.
It also found that people who are obese (people with BMI of more than 30) if engage themselves in physical activities are more likely to live 3.1 years longer than people with normal weight but do not engage in physical activities.
7. Boosts Memory
It has been well documented the effect of physical activity on the brain. A recent research from US confirms that physical activity benefits your memory. Researchers compared two groups of people, including one who exercised for a month with one that did not. The results showed that the group that had exercised performed better in the memory tests than the one who didn’t.
8. IMPROVES SEX LIFE
A study done by the University of Arkansas showed that physical activity increases the blood flow to the genital area making it easier for the women to get an orgasm. And it is not only beneficial for women the same study also shows that men who burn at least 200 calories in a day significantly lower the risk of erectile dysfunction.
9. Sleep Easier
Sleeping pills can help you with insomnia but they do have side effects. Aerobic exercise may be a side effect free solution for you. A study conducted by the Oregon State University showed that people who did moderate to vigorous physical activity at least 150 minutes in a week sleep better and are more alert.
10. Have Fun
Physical activity does not mean that you need to have a strict fitness routine to loose weight or reduce your blood pressure. It can be a time to relax, unwind, catch up with friends or just enjoy the nature. You can go for bush walking, join any community game team or take dance classes. Physical activity will help you to stay healthy and happy.
