What are the health benefits of exercise?

The benefits of exercise include: 

• increases metabolism to burn more calories
• improves the quality of sleep
• boosts brain power
• fights against aging
• reduces body fat
• helps to protect against cancer
• strengthens your bones
• boosts endorphins, improving mood and helping to relieve depression
• cuts your risk for diabetes, hypertension and other diseases
• improves cholesterol profile ( increases protective HDLs)
• enhances your self image

increases your sexual appetite (libido)

Some benefits of exercise are:
• Develops lean muscle mass which aids in
   metabolism for weight loss
• Improves strength for more efficient movement
• Increases energy level
• Improves balance and posture
• Reduces risk for injuries
• Reduces your risk of developing Heart Disease,
   Cancer and Diabetes
• Helps prevent and/or alleviate back pain
   and arthritic pain
• Highly effective for treating depression and stress
• Builds self confidence

There are many benefits of exercise on health. Exercise has been shown to:

• Increase life span
• Decrease heart disease
• Decrease the incidence of diabetes
• Decrease depression and anxiety
• Decrease body fat
• Lower blood pressure
• Decrease the risk of developing certain types of cancer
• Decrease the risk of osteoporosis and slow its progression
• Potentially decrease the risk of developing certain gastrointestinal problems such as ulcers, indigestion, constipation, and diverticulosis
• Increase self-esteem and self-confidence

Consider how magnificently exercise benefits our health and well-being. Exercise lowers blood pressure, reduces cholesterol, and controls blood sugar. It strengthens and builds muscle tone and bones, increases energy levels, reduces body fat, and helps increase the strength of the heart. It prevents heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and a host of other serious medical conditions.

Do anything -- from walking, treadmills, tread climbers, to yoga, tai chi, or Qigong -- something that integrates with your lifestyle and hopefully something you love. As you align yourself with something that brings you passion and energy, you create health in both your mind and your body. Exercise gets essential nutrition into our bodies.

Exercise alleviates stress, anxiety, and depression. It strengthens the immune system, stimulating "natural killer cells" that play a vital role in fighting cancer, bacteria, and viruses.

Our bodies were meant to move: Lack of activity contributes to a host of physical and psychological disorders. Robert M. Butler, M.D., of Mt. Sinai Medical School in New York proclaims, "If exercise could be packaged into a pill, it would be the single most prescribed and beneficial medication in the nation."

We have said many times that there is no magic pill, but when it comes to being healthy, physical activity along with a healthy diet is the closest we can get. Let's review some facts from Physical Activity: The Magic Pill, a booklet published by The President's Council on Fitness and Sports:

• Moderate physical activity helps lower cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure.
• Exercise strengthens muscles and improves flexibility and range of motion, thereby protecting the joints against osteoporosis. It also relieves the symptoms of arthritis.
• Physical exercise reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and certain kinds of cancer. It also helps reduce the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
• Walking 15 minutes at a moderate rate will burn approximately 100 calories; thus, 5 days of walking burns 500 calories. Since there are approximately 3,000 calories in a pound, a 5-day-per-week walking program can reduce your weight by 1 pound every 6 weeks, assuming that you don't increase your caloric intake.

There are several benefits of exercise and performing physical activity on a daily basis that cannot be under emphasized. Some benefits of exercise include reduced incidence of heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Exercise can also improve strength, flexibility, coordination and endurance. Exercise can reduce and prevent musculoskeletal dysfunction such as low-back pain. Lastly, exercise can improve mood, reduce anxiety and stress and improve cognitive function and memory. Exercise is an imperative component of any healthy lifestyle.

Research conducted over the past 20 years leaves no doubt that exercise is an effective strategy to fight the effects of many adverse health conditions. While advances in the diagnosis and treatment of illness in the United States are critical, working proactively to thwart disease is both practical and economical. Much like a broad-spectrum antibiotic, exercise can improve a variety of conditions. Its preventive value is even greater.

There is strong scientific evidence that exercise:

• reduces risk of premature death, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, colon cancer, and breast cancer
• reduces depression, anxiety, and stress
• helps control weight
• helps build and maintain healthy bones, muscles, and joints
• decreases the likelihood of falling
• enhances self-image and promotes psychological well-being
• increases energy
• reduces the risk of cognitive decline
• stimulates creative thinking

Exercise strengthens your heart and lungs, improves your circulation, lowers your blood pressure, keeps your weight down and helps your body maintain steady blood sugar levels. You may experience these benefits by engaging in as little as 30 minutes of low- to moderate-intensity physical activity on most days of the week.

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Exercise offers an impressive array of health benefits. It helps prevent heart disease and type 2 diabetes; lowers the risk for high blood pressure, colon cancer, and breast cancer; and helps relieve insomnia, anxiety, and depression. But that's not all. Several studies suggest that exercise might also help ward off Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

We all know that exercise is beneficial. Let's look at how much it can improve our day-to-day lives.

Metabolic Rate: Exercise is necessary if you want your metabolism working at peak efficiency. Exercise increases your body's muscle mass, which in turn burns more calories. One of the reasons I exercise regularly is that it allows me to eat more!

Self-esteem: When my body has shape and definition I feel better about myself. Some people say that's vain, but what's wrong with some vanity? When I look and feel better I'm more self-assured. I look better in my clothes, and I'm not terrified to wear summer clothes. (Maybe not a bikini but definitely sleeveless shirts, shorter skirts and shorts!) In addition, if you've lost lots of weight, your skin may hang loose, which isn't attractive. Exercise and weights can tighten up loose skin.

Energy Level: People who begin exercise routines always regret not starting earlier. You'll always feel better and have more energy after exercising, no matter how tired you are to begin with. I find that exercise is the answer to mid-afternoon sluggishness. The only reason I can get up early every morning, even if I go to bed too late, is the energy exercise gives me.

Mental Function: Exercise improves mental functioning. When you always feel lethargic, your mind slows down along with your body.

Stress and Mood: There's no question that I get a "high" from my exercise program. Even if I'm having a bad day and feel under the weather, I always get a lift. Exercise reduces my stress, and I cope better with my day. When you exercise, your body produces chemicals called endorphins. You need to get your heart rate up for at least 20 minutes to benefit. Endorphins from exercise can help fight mood swings, anxiety and depression, which can trigger poor eating.

Disease Prevention: Study after study indicates that exercise helps reduce the risk of serious diseases. Improving your heart rate brings several medical benefits:

• Lower blood pressure
• Lower bad cholesterol and more good cholesterol
• Reduced risk of obesity and weight loss
• Reduced risk of type 2 diabetes
• Reduced risk of heart disease and stroke
• Reduced effects of depression
• Reduced risk of certain cancers
• Reduced risk of osteoporosis
• Reduced effects of hormonal problems
• Improved digestion and bowel functioning
• Increased metabolic rate

Not only does exercise give you more energy, but it also reduces the risk for heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, back pain, osteoporosis, breast cancer, and colon cancer. It improves your cholesterol and boosts your immune system. When you exercise, your muscles use glucose for energy, reducing your blood glucose levels. It helps you sleep better. It causes the body to release endorphins that can help relieve stress and depression, and pump up the volume on feelings of peace and happiness. Exercise also releases adrenaline, serotonin, and dopamine, all of which work together as natural mood and energy boosters.

Studies show that if you lose weight, the key to keeping it off is exercise. Even more important, exercise boosts cardiovascular and immune function, bone and joint health, muscle tone and cognitive function. It helps you to manage stress and a host of chronic illnesses, like diabetes and may have protective benefits for mental health issues, including depression and anxiety. The list is endless.