5 Ways Fitness Can Improve Your Health And Well Being

Today, we are much more aware of our health and we all want to improve our overall health and well being. It takes as little as 30 minutes of moderate physical activity to improve your health and possibly add years to your life. Here are five ways adding activity to your life can improve both fitness and the quality of your health:

1. Improves your cardiovascular health. Cardio training is best known for its ability to improve the strength and endurance of your heart and lungs. We now know that all exercise, including strength or resistance training, improves circulation and heart strength, promotes deep breathing, increases blood flow and oxygenation and reduces your risk for heart attack or stroke. Training and fitness will also lower your blood pressure as your arteries become larger in diameter and more flexible.
2. Improves your mood. People who exercise are happier and healthier. Exercise decreases the production and release of stress hormones that are directly responsible for stress and anxiety. While decreasing “bad” hormones, exercise increases the production and release of endorphins, the feel good hormones that make you happy.
3. Improves your posture. You may start exercising to lose weight, but you may soon discover that exercise reduces back pain and shoulder tension. The combination of core strengthening, core stabilization and proper stretching will improve your posture. Good posture can improve your health, your appearance, and your well-being. You will stand taller and be more confident in your ability to accomplish new tasks and goals.
4. Improves your metabolism. Not only will exercise and fitness improve your circulation, it will also improve your metabolism and reduce your risk for obesity and diabetes. As you continue to exercise and improve your fitness level, your body will burn stored fat as you add lean muscle. Lean muscle burns more fat to survive and increases your basal metabolic rate: more muscle burns more fat even at rest. Exercise reduces the release of cortisol, the hormone that signals your body to store fat and confuses your body’s insulin response: exercise reduces your risk for diabetes.
5. Improves strength and flexibility. Exercise, especially resistance training, builds strong muscles and dense bones. Training will also prevent the deterioration of those same muscles and bones often associated with aging, your risk for osteoporosis is greatly reduced. You are able to maintain your functional fitness, your ability to stand, climb stairs and lift groceries. Your body becomes stronger by adapting to the stresses you place on it, if you lift a weight, it becomes easier to lift over time, if you run, you will run faster over time. This adaptation is what makes you stronger and faster, it is also what makes your heart, lungs and internal organs stronger and healthier.