Exercise is defined as any movement that makes your muscles work and requires your body to burn calories. There are many types of physical activity. These include swimming, running, jogging, walking and dancing, to name a few. Being active has been shown to have many health benefits, both physically and mentally. It may even help you live longer. Listed below are the top ten ways regular exercise benefits your body and brain.
1. It Can Make A Happier You.
Exercise has been shown to improve your mood and decrease feelings of depression, anxiety and stress. It produces changes in the parts of the brain that regulate stress and anxiety. It can also increase brain sensitivity for the hormones serotonin and norepinephrine, which relieve feelings of depression. Additionally, exercise can increase the production of endorphins, which are known to help produce positive feelings and reduce the perception of pain. Furthermore, exercise has been shown to reduce symptoms in people suffering from anxiety. It can also help them be more aware of their mental state and practice distraction from their fears. Interestingly, it doesn’t matter how intense your workout is. It seems that your mood can benefit from exercise no matter the intensity of the physical activity. In fact, a study in 24 women who had been diagnosed with depression showed that exercise of any intensity significantly decreased feelings of depression. The effects of exercise on mood are so powerful that choosing to exercise (or not) even makes a difference over short periods. One study shows that 26 healthy men and women who normally exercised regularly to either continue exercising or stop exercising for two weeks. Those who stopped exercising experienced increases in negative mood.
2. It Can Help With Weight Loss.
Some studies have shown that inactivity is a major factor in weight gain and obesity. To understand the effect of exercise on weight reduction, it is important to understand the relationship between exercise and energy expenditure. Your body spends energy in three ways, which are digesting food, exercising and maintaining body functions like your heartbeat and breathing. While dieting, a reduced calorie intake will lower your metabolic rate, which will delay weight loss. On the contrary, regular exercise has been shown to increase your metabolic rate, which will burn more calories and help you lose weight . Additionally, studies have shown that combining aerobic exercise with resistance training can maximise fat loss and muscle mass maintenance, which is essential for keeping the weight off.
3. It Is Good for Your Muscles and Bones.
Exercise plays a vital role in building and maintaining strong muscles and bones. Physical activity like weight lifting can stimulate muscle building when paired with adequate protein intake. This is because exercise helps release hormones that promote the ability of your muscles to absorb amino acids. This helps them grow and reduces their breakdown. As people age, they tend to lose muscle mass and function, which can lead to injuries and disabilities. Practicing regular physical activity is essential to reducing muscle loss and maintaining strength as you age. Exercise helps build bone density when you’re younger, in addition to helping prevent osteoporosis later in life. Interestingly, high impact exercise, such as gymnastics or running, have been shown to promote a higher bone density than non impact sports like swimming and cycling.
4. It Can Increase Your Energy Levels.
Exercise can be a real energy booster for healthy people, as well as those suffering from various medical conditions. A study found that six weeks of regular exercise reduced feelings of fatigue for 36 healthy people who had reported persistent fatigue. Exercise can significantly increase energy levels for people suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and other serious illnesses. In fact, exercise seems to be more effective at combating CFS than other treatments, including passive therapies like relaxation and stretching, or no treatment at all.
5. It Can Reduce Your Risk of Chronic Disease.
Lack of regular physical activity is a primary cause of chronic disease. Regular exercise has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular fitness and body composition, yet decrease blood pressure and blood fat levels. In contrast, a lack of regular exercise even in the short term , can lead to significant increases in belly fat, which increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and untimely death.
6. It Can Help Skin Health.
Your skin can be affected by the amount of oxidative stress in your body. Oxidative stress occurs when the body’s antioxidant defences cannot completely repair the damage that free radicals cause to cells. This can damage their internal structures and deteriorate your skin. Even though intense and exhaustive physical activity can contribute to oxidative damage, regular moderate exercise can increase your body’s production of natural antioxidants, which help protect cells. In the same way, exercise can stimulate blood flow and induce skin cell adaptations that can help delay the appearance of skin ageing.
7. It Can Help Your Brain Health and Memory.
Exercise can improve brain function and protect memory and thinking skills. To begin with, it increases your heart rate, which promotes the flow of blood and oxygen to your brain. It can also stimulate the production of hormones that can enhance the growth of brain cells. The ability of exercise to prevent chronic disease can translate into benefits for your brain, since its function can be affected by these diseases. Regular physical activity is especially important in older adults since ageing, combined with oxidative stress and inflammation can promotes changes in brain structure and function. Exercise has been shown to cause the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is vital for memory and learning, to grow in size. This serves to increase mental function in older adults. Exercise has also shown to reduce changes in the brain that can cause Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia.
8. It Can Help With Relaxation and Sleep Quality.
Regular exercise can help you relax and sleep better. In regards to sleep quality, the energy depletion that occurs during exercise stimulates recuperative processes during sleep. Moreover, the increase in body temperature that occurs during exercise is thought to improve sleep quality by helping it drop during sleep. Many studies on the effects of exercise on sleep have reached similar conclusions. One study found that 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per week can provide up to a 65 percent improvement in sleep quality. Another showed that 16 weeks of physical activity increased sleep quality and helped 17 people with insomnia sleep longer and more deeply than the control group. It also helped them feel more energised during the day. Engaging in regular exercise seems to be beneficial for the elderly, who tend to be affected by sleep disorders.
9. It Can Reduce Pain.
Chronic pain can be debilitating, but exercise can actually help reduce it. In fact, for many years, the recommendation for treating chronic pain was rest and inactivity. However, recent studies show that exercise helps relieve chronic pain. A review of several studies indicates that exercise helps participants with chronic pain reduce their pain and improve their quality of life. Several studies show that exercise can help control pain that is associated with various health conditions, including chronic low back pain, fibromyalgia and chronic soft tissue shoulder disorder, to name a few. Physical activity can also raise pain tolerance and decrease pain perception.
10. Promote a Better Sex Life.
Exercise has been proven to boost sex drive. Engaging in regular exercise can strengthen the cardiovascular system, improve blood circulation, tone muscles and enhance flexibility, all of which can improve your sex life. Physical activity can improve sexual performance and sexual pleasure, as well as increase the frequency of sexual activity. A group of women in their 40s observed that they experienced orgasms more frequently when they incorporated more strenuous exercise such as sprints, boot camps and weight training, into their lifestyles. Another study performed in 78 sedentary men revealed how 60 minutes of walking per day (three and a half days per week, on average) improved their sexual behaviour, including frequency, adequate functioning and satisfaction.
Exercise offers incredible benefits that can improve nearly every aspect of your health from the inside out. Regular physical activity can increase the production of hormones that make you feel happier and help you sleep better. It can also improve your skin complexion, help you lose weight and keep it off, lessen the risk of chronic disease and improve your sex life.
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