The Benefits Of Exercise

Health & Fitness


We know the importance of living a healthy lifestyle, eating a healthy diet and exercising can help us to look after our heart and ward off heart disease and other major illnesses. Having a daily exercise plan will also leave you feeling less tired and stressed and can also make you feel happier.

Research has shown that people suffering from depression have felt a lot better when taking some form of activity on a regular basis. Exercising not only makes you feel good but also makes you look good, it helps to tone and strengthen muscles which will improve your posture and help burn body fat.

Your health in the long term

Benefits to your health in the long term are numerous, exercising for as little as 20 minutes per day 5 days a week will reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and the development of diabetes. It can also have a positive effect on people who suffer from high blood pressure, often helping to bring it lower.

Exercise such as walking can help you reduce the risk of developing brittle bones later in life and help with problems such as constipation, menstrual problems and pre menstrual problems.

All-round fitness

An all-round fitness plan would involve three areas, aerobic exercise and flexibility exercises and strength exercises.

Your health can be improved by developing your aerobic capacity, aerobic exercise is basically any exercise that raises the rate of your heartbeat and makes you sweat slightly, for example a brisk walk or jogging.

The aerobic system is your heart, lungs, muscles and blood vessels. Your capacity is based on how well your body can deliver oxygen to the muscles and how much oxygen they use for energy.

Exercising on a regular basis for a specific time and level will help you to increase the ability to take in and use oxygen while exercising. This will then improve your aerobic capacity.

How to improve your aerobic capacity

This can be achieved by exercising for about 20 minutes per day 3 times a week at an intensity that is within your training zone. Your training zone is calculated by subtracting your age from 220, this will give you your maximum heart rate.

You then multiply this number by 65% the number you get is the number your heart rate should stay when you are exercising aerobically.

Exercise machines in gyms will have a built in heart rate monitor but if you are exercising at home then you can purchase a pulse rate monitor cheaply. These are often in the form of wrist bands or chest bands.