Health Benefits of Regular Exercise and Physical Activity are Importance

Health Benefits of Regular Exercise and Physical Activity are Importance

The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are significant. Everyone can benefit from exercise, regardless of age, sex, or physical ability.

Need more reasons to start moving? Here are seven ways exercise can lead to a happier, healthier you.

1. Exercise controls weight: Exercise helps prevent weight gain and assists in maintaining lost weight. When you engage in physical activity, you burn calories. More intense activities burn more calories. Regular trips to the gym are beneficial, but don’t worry if you can’t find a large block of time to exercise daily. Any activity is better than none. To reap the benefits, increase your activity level throughout the day. For instance, take the stairs instead of the elevator or tackle more chores at home.

2. Exercise combats health conditions and diseases: Concerned about heart disease? Want to avoid high blood pressure? No matter your current weight, being active increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, the "good" cholesterol, while decreasing unhealthy triglycerides. This combination promotes better blood flow and lowers the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Regular exercise helps prevent or manage many health issues, including:

• Stroke
• Metabolic syndrome
• High blood pressure
• Type 2 diabetes
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Many types of cancer
• Arthritis
• Falls

Exercise can also enhance cognitive function and reduce the risk of death from any cause.

3. Exercise improves mood: Need an emotional boost? Or want to relieve stress after a busy day? A gym session or brisk walk can help. Physical activity triggers the release of brain chemicals that may make you feel happier, more relaxed, and less anxious.

To you might also feel better about your appearance, when you exercise regularly, which can be increase your confidence and self-esteem.

4. Exercise boosts energy: Feeling tired after grocery shopping or doing housework? Regular physical activity improves muscle strength and endurance. Exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and helps your cardiovascular system function more efficiently. To Improved heart and lung health means more energy for daily tasks.

5. Exercise promotes better sleep: Having trouble sleeping? Regular physical activity can be help to you fall asleep faster, enhance sleep quality, and deepen sleep. Just be sure not to exercise too close to bedtime, as it may keep you too healthy and energized to sleep.

6. Exercise recreates your sex life: Regular physical activity can boost energy levels and increase confidence in your appearance, which can enhance your sex life.

Additionally, exercise may increase arousal for women. Men who exercise regularly are less likely to face erectile dysfunction compared to those who do not exercise.

7. Exercise can be enjoyable and social! Exercise can be fun. It offers an opportunity to relax, enjoy the outdoors, or engage in activities that bring you happiness. Physical activity also lets you connect to with family or friends in a social setting.

To practice a dance class, exploring hiking trails, or joining a football team. An physical activity you can enjoy the healthy, and make it a part of your routine life. If you're feeling bored, explore something new or do activities with friends or family.

Exercise to improve your mood and have fun.

An Exercise and physical activity are excellent ways to feel better, enhance your health, and enjoy to yourself. For most healthy adults, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends these exercise guidelines:

- Aerobic activity: Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or at least 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week. You can also mix moderate and vigorous activities. Try to spread this exercise over several days.

For even greater health benefits, the guidelines suggest aiming for 300 minutes a week or more of moderate aerobic activity. This level of exercise may assist with weight loss or maintenance. However, even small amounts of physical activity can be beneficial.

Being active for short periods during the day can add up and provide health benefits.

Strength training: Perform strength training exercises for all major muscle groups at least twice a week. One set of each exercise is enough to gain health and fitness benefits. Use a weight or resistance level heavy enough to tire your muscles after about 12 to 15 repetitions.

Moderate aerobic exercise includes activities such as brisk walking, biking, swimming, and mowing the lawn.
Vigorous aerobic exercise includes activities like running, swimming laps, heavy yard work, and aerobic dancing.
You can do strength training using weight machines or free weights, your own body weight, heavy bags, or resistance bands. Resistance paddles in the water or activities like rock climbing can also work.
If you want to lose weight, keep off lost weight, or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to exercise more.

Remember to consult a healthcare professional before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have any fitness concerns or haven’t exercised for a long time. Also, check with a healthcare professional if you have chronic health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, or arthritis.

Most people focus on one type of exercise and think they’re doing enough. Research shows that it’s essential to get all three types: aerobic, muscle-strengthening, and balance.

Doing one type of exercise can help improve your ability to perform others. Variety helps reduce boredom and the risk of injury. There are also activities that combine multiple exercise types, like yoga, dancing, or water aerobics.

For workout videos and examples of how to do some of the exercises listed below, visit NIA’s YouTube channel. No matter your age, you can find activities that suit your fitness level and needs, helping you improve your overall health!

Aerobic exercises for older adults:

Sometimes called endurance or cardio, aerobic physical activity involves moving the body’s large muscles for an extended time. This requires the lungs to move more air and the heart to pump more blood to the working muscles. Aerobic physical activity increases your breathing and heart rate.

Being physically active this way, consistently over time, will improve your endurance and the health of your lungs, heart, and circulatory system. It can also help lower the risk of many diseases common in older adults, such as diabetes, certain cancers, and heart disease.

Gradually build up to at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, like brisk walking, each week. If exercising with chronic conditions makes it hard to meet the recommended amount of activity, talk with your doctor about what you can do. In general, it’s wise to be as physically active as you can. Even light-intensity movement can be beneficial. Try to stay active throughout your day and avoid sitting for long periods.

Examples of moderate-intensity activities that build endurance include:

• Yard work, such as raking leaves or pushing a lawnmower

• Housework, such as mopping or vacuuming

• Dancing

• Swimming

• Bicycling

• Climbing stairs or hills

• Playing pickleball

Safety tips:

• Listen to your body. Aerobic activities should not cause dizziness, chest pain, pressure, or nausea.

• Do light activity, such as easy walking, before and after aerobic activities to warm up and cool down.

• Drink water when doing any activity that makes you sweat. If your doctor has told you to limit fluids, check before increasing the amount you drink while exercising.

• If exercising outdoors, pay attention to the weather and your surroundings.

• Use safety equipment, such as a helmet when biking, and wear proper exercise shoes and clothes to prevent injuries.

• Talk with your doctor if you are unsure about a particular activity.

Quick tip: Test your exercise intensity. When you’re active, try talking. If you’re breathing hard but can still converse easily, it’s probably moderate-intensity activity. If you can only say a few words before needing breath, it’s vigorous-intensity activity, such as running or jogging. Building up to 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity or combining both moderate and vigorous activities can also count toward your aerobic

exercise goal.

Muscle-strengthening exercises for older adults:

Muscle-strengthening exercises, sometimes called strength training or resistance training, require the muscles to contract, often to lift a heavy object against the force of gravity.

Pull of gravity. Gradually increasing the amount of weight, the number of sets or repetitions, or how many days a week you exercise will make your muscles stronger. Muscle-strengthening activities improve physical function. They help you stay independent and make everyday tasks easier, like getting up from a chair, climbing stairs, or carrying groceries. This type of exercise is also important for maintaining your current strength, slowing muscle loss, and preventing falls and injuries related to falls.

Aim to do muscle-strengthening activities at least two days each week to target the major muscle groups in your body. These include the muscles in your legs, hips, chest, back, abdomen, shoulders, and arms. Avoid working the same muscle group on consecutive days to allow for recovery.

The exercises should be done at a moderate level of intensity. Aim to perform them until it becomes difficult to do another repetition. One set of eight to 12 repetitions for each exercise is effective, although doing two or three sets may offer better results. If you are a beginner, start with exercises that don't use weights or resistance bands. These stretchy bands come in different strengths and can help you get comfortable with the movements.

Examples of muscle-strengthening activities include:
• Using resistance bands, weight machines, or hand-held weights
• Lifting your body weight with exercises like arm circles, leg raises, push-ups, pull-ups, planks, squats, or lunges
• Carrying heavy items, like groceries
• Gardening, which may require digging and lifting
Safety tips:

• Listen to your body. Doing too many muscle-strengthening exercises can lead to exhaustion, sore joints, and muscle pain or injury.

• Warm up before doing more intense muscle-strengthening activities by using lighter weights.
• Don’t hold your breath during exercises—exhale during the effort and inhale as you relax.
• Avoid locking your arm and leg joints in a straight position.
• If you’re unsure about a movement, ask your doctor or physical therapist for help.

• Consider working with a personal trainer or joining a group class at a gym, recreation center, or senior center to learn the proper form.

Balance exercises for older adults:

Balance means keeping your body stable whether you're still or moving. Like muscle-strengthening exercises, balance exercises can help prevent falls and injuries. Aim for about three balance exercise sessions each week.

Examples of balance exercises include:

• Tai chi, a “moving meditation” that involves shifting your body slowly and gently while breathing deeply

• Yoga
• Standing on one foot
• The heel-to-toe walk
• The balance walk
• Walking backward or sideways
• Practicing standing up from a sitting position
• Using a wobble board
Safety tips:
• Listen to your body. If you feel sporadic, then take steps to steady yourself.
• Go slowly and carefully to avoid stumbling.
• If you’re sometime uncertain about a particular movement, pursue advice from your doctor or physical therapist.
• Keep a stable chair, person, or wall nearby for support.
• Wear comfortable, stable shoes or go barefoot for better grip on the floor or mat.

What are the benefits of exercise?

A smartly designed exercise program will benefit your body and mind in innumerable ways.

The benefits of exercise on mental health are well documented. For example, one major study found that sedentary people are 44% more likely to be depressed. Another found that those with mild to moderate depression could get similar results to those obtained through antidepressants just by exercising for 90 minutes each week. The key appears to be the release of brain chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine, which help lift mood and combat stress.

We're all familiar with exercise's ability to improve cardiovascular health. But how does exercise lower blood pressure? Interestingly, when you stimulate your circulatory system through aerobic exercise, you're temporarily increasing your blood pressure by forcing the system to work harder, but when you've finished exercising, your blood pressure drops to a lower level than it was before you began.

Many people think of exercise as an integral part of weight loss, and although diet is also extremely important, they're not wrong. But what exercise burns the most calories? Generally, aerobic exercises (cardio) are great for expending calories and reducing fat. But don't overlook the effectiveness of strength training, which optimizes your body's ratio of lean muscle to fat (It's also the best exercise for bone strength).

There's no Holy Grail when it comes to a single best weight-loss exercise. The best exercise to lose weight is the one you'll do consistently. Whatever gets your heart rate up and gets your body moving — while having fun and staying motivated — is the exercise that will help you shed pounds.