Photo By Curtis Macnewton
While many of us already know that exercise is a great way to improve your overall health and quality of life, there are some unique benefits that we should all know!
- Improve your mental health and mood
By engaging in physical activity, your risk of depression decreases and it can help you sleep better. Many studies have shown that people who exercise tend to have high self-esteem, improved quality of life and better rates of happiness.
Serotonin and endorphins that are released during exercise help with the mental well-being as well as the physical one. Your thinking, learning, and judgment skills can be kept sharp as you age due to physical exercise.
An article published in the New York Times tells us that exercise can slow down brain cell lossage and even reverse the process as well, after just one year of exercise.
- Reduce your risk of some cancers
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, physically active people have a lower risk of colon cancer and women have a lower risk of breast cancer than those who are not active.
The risk of endometrial and lung cancer can also be reduced by physical activity as well. As for cancer survivors, helps give you a better quality life and improved physical fitness…now who would not want that?
- Helps you quit smoking
By curbing withdrawal symptoms and cravings, exercise is beneficial for putting a stop to smoking as well. Exercise can also make someone more aware of their shortness of breath due to smoking, which normally increases their desire to smoke less and work out more.
- Can help you land a better job
The Journal of Labor Research shows that those who work out at least 3 times a week earn 9% more pay than their co-workers. Exercise is not going to automatically increase your wealth but it does give confidence which correlates to many different positive outcomes.
- Improves skin
Exercise and healthy dieting can fight many skin conditions. Research from the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine shows that exercising 3 hours a week may lead to a better complexion. Women in their 40s who exercised like this had similar compositions, when examined microscopically, as people in their 20s and 30s.
- Increases your chances of living longer
Exercising regularly reduces the chance of dying prematurely. It raises the HDL ,or “good cholesterol,” levels and reducing unhealthy cholesterol. Lowering blood pressure, burning body fat and reducing blood sugar levels are all rewarding outcomes of exercise. All of these factors help the heart tremendously; making us live a longer, happier life.
All of these awesome benefits from exercising sound pretty good, right? Get out there and exercise!