SOME THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT EXERCISE
WebMD
Feature Archive
Want to
be sharper at work? Feel less tired at home? Spend some quality time with your
spouse? How about enjoying a cookie without guilt?
If you
answered "yes" to all of these questions (and who wouldn't?),
exercise is the answer.
Being
physically active offers benefits far beyond the obvious. (Of course, an
improved physique and a clean bill of health aren't too shabby, either.)
If you've
been looking for the motivation to begin an exercise program or get back into
working out regularly, here are 10 fitness facts that may help inspire you to
get off the couch.
Not only
does exercise improve your body, it helps your mental function, says certified
trainer David Atkinson.
"Exercise
increases energy levels and increases serotonin in the brain, which leads to
improved mental clarity," says Atkinson, director of program development
for Cooper Ventures, a division of the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas.
All that
makes for a more productive day.
"It
is clear that those who are active and who exercise are much more productive at
work," says Todd A. Astorino, assistant professor of kinesiology at
California State University-San Marcos.
Improved
productivity not only makes you a better worker, it makes things better for
everyone in the workplace. Companies with less wasted work hours and less sick
time end up with lower health care costs -- and an improved bottom line,
Astorino says.
As much
as it may stress you out just to think about exercising, once you actually start
working out, you'll experience less stress in every part of your life.
"Exercise
produces a relaxation response that serves as a positive distraction,"
says Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for the American Council on
Exercise. He says it also helps elevate your mood and keep depression at bay.
You're
not the only person who will benefit from more happiness and less stress in
your life. When you're less stressed, you're less irritable, Atkinson says --
and that could improve relationships with your partner, kids, and co-workers.
You might
be surprised at how, say, popping in a workout tape for 30 minutes in the
morning can change your whole day. When endorphins are released into your
bloodstream during exercise, says Astorino, "you feel much more energized
the rest of the day."
And when
you improve your strength and stamina, it's easier to accomplish everyday tasks
like carrying groceries and climbing stairs. This also helps you feel more
energetic over the course of the day.
A common
excuse among Atkinson's clients is that they're too tired to exercise, he says.
While exercise may make you feel more tired at first, he says, that won't last
long.
The
physical tiredness you feel after working out isn't the same as everyday
fatigue, he says. Besides, once your body adjusts to exercise, you'll have more
energy than ever.
The key,
says Atkinson, is to use your time more wisely. Think about killing two birds
with one stone.
Take your
kids to the park or ride bikes together, and you're getting physical activity
while enjoying family time, he says. Beyond that, go for a hike, take the kids
swimming, or play hide-and-seek, tag, softball, or horseshoes in the backyard.
At work,
he says, schedule a meeting on the jogging track or on the golf course.
Also,
forget the idea that you have to trudge to the gym and spend an hour or more
doing a formal workout. Instead, you can work short spurts of physical activity
into your day.
"Everyone
has 20 minutes," Atkinson says. "Everyone has 10 minutes to jump
rope, and sometimes that's better than 20 minutes of walking or running."
Indeed,
squeezing in two or three bouts of 15 or 20 minutes of activity is just as
effective as doing it all at once, says Astorino. Vacuuming the house in the
morning, riding bikes in the park with the kids in the afternoon, then taking a
brisk walk in the evening can add up to an active day.
Recent
U.S. government guidelines say that to lose weight and keep it weight off, you
should accumulate at least 60 minutes of exercise a day, says Astorino. But
half an hour a day is all you need to reap the health and disease-fighting
benefits of exercise.
Think of
what exercising with a partner can do for a relationship, whether it's with a
spouse, a sibling, or a friend you used to go to lunch with once a week.
Not only
that, says Astorino, but exercise is always more fun when there's someone to do
it with. So plan to walk with your spouse after dinner every night. Meet your
sister or that friend for tennis or an aerobics class instead of lunch.
Besides,
Astorino says, people who have exercise partners stay with their programs and
reach their goals more often than those who try to go it alone.
"For
long-term weight loss, you need to have social support," Astorino says.
Research
has shown that exercise can slow or help prevent heart disease, stroke, high
blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis
(bone loss), and loss of muscle mass, says Astorino.
It also
helps ease some aspects of the aging process.
"Because
exercise strengthens the muscles and joints, it is going to reduce your odds of
having some of those aches and pains and problems most adults have, mostly
because of the inactive lives they lead," Bryant says.
Provided
you don't overdo it, he says, exercise can even boost immune function -- so you
spend less time down with a cold or flu.
"There
isn't a major health problem where exercise cannot have a positive
effect," says Byrant.
Not only
does exercise help fight disease, says Bryant, it creates a stronger heart --
the most important muscle in the body. That helps makes exercise -- and the
activities of daily life -- feel easier.
"Your
heart and cardiovascular system will function more effectively," says
Bryant. "The heart will build up less plaque. It will become a more
efficient pump."
And
"when the heart becomes stronger, it pumps more blood per beat, so at
rest, the heart rate is lower," says Astorino. "It's not going to
have to beat as fast" to expend the same amount of effort.
Within
only a couple days after you start exercising, Astorino says, "the body
readily adapts to the stimulus it's getting and it becomes easier. You will
feel less fatigue. It will not take as much effort when it comes to breathing.
You shouldn't have as much pain or soreness."
Pound for
pound, muscle burns more calories at rest than body fat. So the more muscle you
have, the higher your resting metabolic rate. And, of course, you also burn
calories while you're actually exercising.
All this
means that "cheating" with a cookie once in a while isn't going to
take you back 10 steps. "Can you eat anything? No," says Atkinson.
"But you can afford to enjoy some of the things you really like when you
exercise regularly. You can better get away with those things in moderation
than you can when you're not working out."
After a
few weeks of consistent exercise, you may feel your clothes fitting differently
and see that your muscle tone has improved, Atkinson says.
You may
also notice your newly pumped-up muscles in other ways, especially if you're a
recreational golfer or tennis player, or like a friendly game of pick-up
basketball, says Atkinson. Exercising consistently will strengthen your
muscles, increase flexibility, and improve your overall performance.
"Your
muscles will work much more efficiently and you'll gain a greater sense of
endurance," says Bryant. In addition, he says, your reaction time and
balance will improve.
Weight
loss is the reason many people exercise in the first place. But it's certainly
not the sole benefit of an exercise program.
Bryant
says the long-term goal of weight loss is sold too heavily to people starting
fitness programs, and that can be discouraging. People have trouble sticking
with something if they don't see results quickly.
"Really,
they should think about the level of functioning in the activities of daily
living," says Bryant. "That can serve as the motivation to keep them
coming back for more."
So
whatever weight loss goal you have when starting a fitness program, don't make
it your only goal. Strive to feel better, to have more energy, to be less
stressed. Notice the small things that exercise does for you quickly, rather
than getting hung up on the narrow goal of the number on a scale.
"With
a goal of losing weight and enhancing health, exercise has to become a part of
a person's life, not an afterthought," Astorino says.
No comments:
Post a Comment