There are over 100 different benefits of exercise. Today I will be going through the top 12.
- Exercise reduces your mental stress
Exercise is often referred to as the ‘natural anti-depressant’.
When you exercise it increases the rate at which your brain fires serotonin neurons, which are responsible for the synthesis and production of the serotonin hormone. This is your happy hormone, improving your mood.
It also triggers the dopamine receptors in your brain releasing the dopamine hormone, which is your feel-good hormone.
Your endorphins are also released through exercise, which also make you feel good.
These hormones collectively then reduce the level of cortisol and adrenaline your body releases, your body’s stress hormones.
- Activity increases your metabolism
If you exercise every day or every second day, your metabolism will be constantly working at a higher rate. This helps reduce adipose tissue, or stored fat and improves detoxification.
When you exercise, you burn fat and glycogen stored in the cells. Breaking down these energy stores is the process which we know as your metabolism.
You are burning energy throughout the day even when you are not exercising. This occurs as your body needs fat and glycogen as energy to perform the basic functions of survival such as beating the heart, helping the lungs respire, your organs to their jobs, create hormones etc. etc. This occurs at a much slower rate than burning energy during exercise.
Not only does this process speed up during exercise but it continues long after you stop exercising. In fact can speed up for as long as 72 hours after exercise.
- Activity boosts your thermogenic effect
Exercise increases the thermogenic effect. That simply means it increases the temperature of your body. This can be dangerous if your body temperature gets too high, so your body burns more energy to cool your body down to a safe temperature. By increasing your temperature through thermogenesis, forcing it to work hard to cool you down, you are increasing energy expenditure.
You don’t always have to go hard or go home all the time. You can experience the same benefits as you do with exercise, with other simple activity.
As we said earlier, your body is burning energy around the clock, even when you sleep. Basic movement and activity can speed the process up, such as walking, vacuuming, sweeping, laughing, stretching and much, much more. Basically, anything that requires you to move. Even turning in your sleep. All this increases your thermogenic effect.
- Walking boosts your mood
Besides the benefits to your metabolism and thermogenic effect, walking also boosts your mood, as it triggers the parasympathetic nervous system. This is the system that signals to your brain to relax.
It is responsible for reducing your stress hormones and helping you feel calm and more relaxed.
When you feel calm and relax, your spirits raise as does your mood.
If you walk in the sun, the sun increases serotonin production which makes you feel even happier!
- Exercises improves your sleep
Let’s face it, we are all nicer people when we have had adequate sleep. Especially if it is good quality sleep.
When you exercise it reduces your cortisol, as well as regulating the secretion of this stress hormone throughout the day. As such it means it helps keep it lower around sleep time, to help you relax and unwind. With the reduction in cortisol your body is able to secrete melatonin, your sleepy hormone. This helps you feel tired and go to bed earlier, fall asleep earlier, and stay asleep more, throughout the night.
Collectively this means you sleep better! The better you sleep, the nicer person you are. Your mood improves, your metabolism improves, and your day gets brighter all round.
- Improves social connectivity
By nature, humans are social beings. If you include exercise in your routine that involves a team, or a group, going into a gym or park and being surrounded by people, or even just one other person, it increases your oxytocin the hormone that helps you connect with people. Oxytocin is your ‘love’ hormone. The more oxytocin you have the more love, compassion, passion, empathy and connection you feel. All of these help you connect with people better.
- Activity improves your overall health and well-being
We generally know that exercise is good for your health, improving your heart health, blood pressure, muscularity, reduces fat stores, improves bone density and more.
But the side effect of all of these health benefits is also exciting. When you feel better, move better and look better, it can help you feel more confident and content in your life. These are huge contributors to your overall well-being.
Collectively these can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, improving quality of life.
- Exercise boosts your energy
You may have heard of the saying ‘lethargy breeds lethargy’ and the same can be said about your energy levels.
The more you move, the more you want to move, to keep receiving all ‘good feels’ of movement. Remember dopamine that makes you feel good and is your addictive hormone. The more you secrete the more your brain wants so it boosts your energy to move more to get more of the dopamine hit.
The best thing you can do when you ‘can’t be bothered’ is get up and move. It will very quickly, snap you out of it!
Exercise is an excellent way to combat fatigue.
- Anti-aging factors
Who doesn’t love a good anti-aging effect?! Exercise increases your antioxidants, reducing the free radicals in your body. Free radicals warp cells, increasing the aging process. When you reduce free radicals, you improve cell form and function, slowing down and sometimes reversing, the aging process.
We measure our clients’ Basal Metabolic Age (BMA) using our in-body scanner. This tells us how old their body is at cellular level. A huge goal as a coach is to help your client reduce their BMA, as not only will this help them look and feel better, but it increases their life expectancy.
- Exercise make you feel empowered
Whether you are new to exercise or an athlete there is something very empowering about feeling strong and capable.
Initially you might struggle to fine tune the form and technique of the exercise but as you continue to practice your confidence will raise very quickly.
Your coordination improves, your fitness, strength, flexibility, and overall ability improves. This increases your confidence and self-worth as you start to feel empowered. It is an excellent way to help you feel proud of yourself and your achievements.
- Activity improves digestion
If you have ever suffered with digestive issues, you will fully appreciate how miserable you feel when your digestion is playing up.
Exercise helps improves your digestion as it increases blood flow to the visceral area (abdomen and chest), increasing detoxification, and speeding up your metabolism.
- Movement improves mobility and reduces non-injury related aches and pains
Sedentary people often suffer with tight joints, tight muscles and aches and pains throughout their body, even though they may not have an injury.
This is caused by inactive or tight muscles, ligaments and tendons, that scream out when you finally move. Office workers and drivers in particular, experience lower back pain and neck pain, from the constant sitting, especially if sitting in front of a computer.
When you are in pain, you tend to feel stressed and miserable. It effects your mood, your ability to function properly and your overall quality of life.
Exercise prevents inactive muscles, and improves the elasticity in muscles, ligaments and tendons. It improves blood flow and therefore oxygen flow to the muscles. This helps you move better, have a brighter mood, and improves rational and clear thinking.
Conclusion:
I could go on and on about the benefits and the power of exercise and activity for your mind, body and spirit, but I think you get the drift.
It doesn’t have to be vigorous or strenuous. It could be simply maintaining 10,000 steps per day, getting a sit to stand desk, stretching every half hour, or anything else that gets you moving. Get active and reap the benefits.
- Coach Terri
