Overall Health by A. Louis Blackwell - HTML preview

Chapter 4:

The Basics On Exercise

Synopsis

Most of us know how important exercise is in our daily lives is. It is one of the backbones of our overall health. To add, physical exercise is proven effective in reducing stress as well as emotional setbacks. When you exercise on a regular basis you are more likely to stay healthier, happier and composed most of the time compared to those who rarely exercise.

Keep Fit

Despite the fact that we know how important exercise is, still we cannot find time to do it and stick to our exercise schedule on a regular basis. Why do we need to exercise anyway? What do we get out of it? Read on to understand more about the concept and benefits of exercise. Regular exercise has countless benefits, below are the most noted.

1. An effective way to lose weight while maintaining a healthy and lean body even as you age
2. Effective in maintaining bone mass
3. Lowers bad cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure
4. Effective in reducing stress and enhancing sleep
5. Maintains good cardiovascular health, energy, flexibility and a good physical image.

The above mentioned are the most known benefits of exercise. Many people are under the impression that when they are doing their regular activities such as gardening, sweeping, washing the car, cleaning the dishes and the like, they are already exercising and expect to get the same benefits of structured exercise. This is not the case!

Unfortunately, your daily activities are different from structured exercise, where you can expect great results. Your daily activities will just help you burn some calories and stay active. Thus, if you want optimum results, you should do both on a regular basis.

To get a good start, see your doctor and ask for advice as you might have some limitations when you exercise. In most cases however, exercises are safe to perform. Limitations only apply to people who are suffering from chronic diseases, heart problems, arthritis, bone problems, high blood pressure, respiratory problems and the like.

Once you have done the initial steps, find out which exercise best suits you and make it a routine. Do not strain yourself. Do it gradually but regularly. Make sure that you enjoy what you are doing, because if you don’t you will eventually lose interest in doing it. You may try changing your routine and try other fitness exercises as long as you can benefit from it. This should be done to reduce boredom in the long run.