Regardless of your age, weight or lifestyle, we’ve all been told at some point that regular exercise is good for you. Somewhere down the line, whether it was in school or at home, it’s been drilled into our minds that we need to exercise often to stay in top form. However, do we really know all of the reasons why regular exercise is so important, or do we always focus on trying to look better in the eyes of others?
In this quick post, we’re going to look at both the most common, and the less commonly discussed advantages of regularly exercising. Hopefully, you will get to the end of this and be just that little bit more motivated to get out and burn some energy once a day. Let’s start with the obvious one that is always spoken about, staying healthy.
Keeps You Healthy and Helps You Lose Weight
The most talked about reason for exercising regularly is to lose weight and get that ‘dream figure’ that you’ve always wanted. This pursuit of looking better is one that has been present for as long as humanity has as we constantly find ourselves being judged on our position, even if that’s probably not the best way of doing things and treating others.
Achieving that ‘perfect body’ which we all aspire to can be incredibly hard and requires multiple different lifestyle choices to be in place. Whilst exercise is essential towards the journey, it needs to be accompanied by a good diet, which is why there has been a distinctive rise in ‘fad dieting’, despite the fact they often aren’t that good for you.
Regardless, the most common mistake people make is that they only diet or they only exercise, instead of using the two techniques at once, so make sure that you are regularly exercising and eating well to get that body you want.
This extends even further into general healthy living. Regular exercise incredible for your body’s overall health, not just your weight an appearance. A brilliant example of this is heart disease.
Heart disease currently affects 7 million people in the UK and causes more than a quarter of all deaths in the country, equating to 160,000 people each year. Those numbers are incredibly scary and regular exercise has been proven to reduce risk by lowering blood pressure, building muscle mass and improving circulation. Heart disease isn’t the only major illness that has a reduced risk due to regularly exercising, which is why the general health benefits are arguably just as – if not more – important than the appearance advantages.
Improves Your Mood
A slightly less mentioned advantage of regularly exercising is its impact on how you’re feeling. There are many ways to give yourself a little mood boost, ranging from attending social events to growing flowers in the garden. Everyone has a different mind which responds to different things and it can be a challenge to find what works for you when you are down.
However, exercising has been scientifically proven to improve how you are feeling. This is primarily due to the release of endorphins during exercising, which are simple neurotransmitters that help you feel good about yourself. Ultimately, when you go for a run or work out, your body releases these neurotransmitters and in turn, you feel better about yourself and about what you have achieved.
Next time you’re feeling down and out, find some form of organised exercise and give it ago. Whether it’s an exercise class in Islington or a Zumba class in Edinburgh, any form of physical activity will give your mood a little boost. Stick to organised events initially as the social aspect will keep you motivated, then you can branch into personal activities and individual running or gym work.
Helps You Sleep
Finally, easily the least spoken about advantage is how exercise helps you sleep. This is particularly important for those suffering with insomnia or with busy minds that have trouble dropping off.
Regular exercise does two things to improve your sleep. Initially, it clears your mind as you focus on the task at hand, pushing the worries that plague your thoughts out of the way. Secondly, whilst it might seem obvious, exercise makes you tired. You are much more likely to fall asleep quicker and enjoy a better quality of sleep if you are actually drained and tired once you hit the pillow.
This works especially well if you go to the gym or exercise late at night so that you can get home, have a warm shower and get into bed whilst you’re still experiencing that exercise high. The boost in sleep quality ties back into the health benefits that we mentioned previously, as having deep, restful sleep empowers your immune system and prepares you better for the day ahead.
These are by far not the only advantages of exercising regularly but they are definitely some of the most relevant to your everyday life. Try starting slow with an exercise routine and see how it makes you feel, you’re almost guaranteed to enjoy the benefits within a week and then you’ll find it much easier to stay motivated!
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