It is gloomy outside and you feel like you need that extra bit of motivation to get you exercising? Look no further because here are some facts to inspire you!
1) Exercising gets you smarter! Cardiovascular exercise helps create new brain cells. This improves brain power and brain activity. It also increases the production of cells that are responsible for learning and memory.
2) Movement melts stress away! As much as it may stress you out to just think about exercising, once you 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. It also helps elevate your mood and keep depression at bay.
3) Exercise lets you eat more! 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, 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!
4) Exercise helps your career! Exercise increases energy levels and increases serotonin in the brain, which leads to improved mental clarity. 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.
5) Exercise makes you sleep better! Struggling to snooze? Regular physical activity can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. Just don’t exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to hit the hay.
6) Exercise Benefit: More Muscle! As people enter their forties and fifties, muscle mass starts to decline because of aging and, in some cases, decreased activity levels. Muscular atrophy can also occur because of health conditions such as joint pain. As we age, it’s important to increase or maintain muscle mass through strength training, not only because it helps burn calories, but also because muscle mass is essential for strength and balance.
7) Healthier Digestion! Although constipation can have a variety of causes, a lack of exercise can be a major contributing factor. Exercise can help. It also enhances many factors that are indirectly beneficial, such as increased hydration and better dietary intake.
8) Cut Cancer Risk! Inactivity is associated with increased risk for a number of cancers, including colon and breast cancer. Exercise has been linked with a decreased risk of developing cancer, death from cancer, and recurrence of certain cancers. The suggested mechanisms at play include exercise’s beneficial effects on the immune and surveillance systems that detect and kill cancer cells, improved cardio-respiratory status, improved hormonal profiles, weight maintenance, and other beneficial metabolic effects, he says.
So what are you waiting for? Figure out your favourite way to exercise and head here to gear up!