Everyone knows that exercise is good for you, but do you know why? Learn about the very best health benefit of exercise and learn about many other benefits too
Doesn’t it seem like every time you see a list of “How to Improve Your (just about anything)” it includes exercise? It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to find out how to reduce stress, sleep better, be happier or anything else – getting enough exercise always seems to be one of the keys.
Exercise is beneficial in so many different ways that it is difficult to keep track of them. This isn’t just something that people say. It’s a proven fact.
Listed below are several health benefits of exercise that have been scientifically proven.
1Longevity Is the Best Health Benefit of Exercise
Isn’t the best benefit of anything the fact that it will help you to live longer? Numerous studies have proven over and over again that living longer is a health benefit of exercise.
Please read the rest of the items on our list, but isn’t this benefit one the most important?
2A Better Brain
Simply put, exercise will stimulate the development of new brain cells. More specifically, the area that benefits the most from these brain cells is responsible for your learning and memory skills. Studies have even shown a connection between exercise and improved problem solving skills.
Becoming smarter is a major health benefit of exercise.
3A Better Sex Life
Another health benefit of exercise is that it will make your sex life better. The improvements that you will see in cardiovascular function, endurance, muscle strength and body composition are benefits that both men and women will see.
It has also been proven that men who get regular exercise are less likely to suffer from impotence and erectile dysfunction.
4Battle Depression
Having an improved ability to fight off the symptoms of depression is another health benefit of exercise. Studies have shown that 30 minutes of exercise a day for 3 – 5 days per week can provide similar results to the prescription drug Zoloft.
5Better Cardiovascular Health
Many people don’t realize it, but your heart is actually a muscle. When you exercise, it gets stronger.
A stronger heart means your entire cardiovascular system functions at a higher level. Is it worth a little workout to you in order to have a better heart? It should be.
6Lower Cholesterol is a Health Benefit of Exercise
Cholesterol isn’t the same as fat. When you exercise, fat is burned off of your body. Cholesterol doesn’t work that way. However, it has been proven that exercise decreases your bad cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides. It also increases your good (HDL) cholesterol.
7Diabetes Control and Prevention
Multiple studies have confirmed a major health benefit of exercise is a reduction in the chance you will develop diabetes. One study showed a combination of exercise and a balanced diet reduced your risk of becoming diabetic by 50%.
8Lower Blood Pressure
The health benefit of exercise related to lowering your blood pressure is clear, however this is one area where that way that this happens is unclear. Scientists just know that exercise lowers your blood pressure, they don’t know why.
The benefit to your blood pressure seems to be much more pronounced in individuals who have hypertension vs those who don’t.
9Healthier Body Weight
Clearly one of the biggest health benefits of exercise is that it controls your weight. The biggest ways that it does this is because exercise burns calories, but it helps in other ways too. The secondary health benefit of exercise related to your weight is that it speeds up your metabolism. This means your body burns fat faster, and for a longer time than if you didn’t exercise.
What Do You Think?
Is there another health benefit of exercise that is missing from our list? If you have friends or family who are still non-believers, forward this to them.
