The benefits of participating in a regular exercise routine go far above and beyond weight management. Research has proven that exercise can help decrease your risk of developing a number of diseases and improve your overall quality of life. Here are just a few benefits of incorporating exercise into your life.
Improves bone health: Regular weight-bearing exercise, such as walking, running, or resistance exercise, helps promote healthy bone growth, delays bone loss, and may protect against osteoporosis, a form of bone loss associated with aging.
Prevents and controls diabetes: The Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study (DPS) is the first individually randomized controlled clinical trial to test the effects of lifestyle modification in individuals with a high-risk of developing diabetes. The DPS study results showed that type 2 diabetes can be prevented by making changes in lifestyle, including improving diet and exercising.
Improves mood: A recent study showed the antidepressant effect of regular physical exercise to be as effective at boosting mood as antidepressant medication. Individuals in the study exercising at least 30 minutes a day three times a week showed decreased symptoms of depression and elevated mood.
Helps lower cholesterol: Exercise has been shown to improve cholesterol levels by decreasing LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides and total cholesterol and increasing HDL (good) cholesterol.
Lowers blood pressure: A recent study analyzed the effects of exercise on individuals suffering from hypertension (high blood pressure). Results concluded that exercise can help decrease blood pressure and recommends exercise be used in the management of hypertension both in untreated hypertensive patients and for individuals at high-risk for developing hypertension.
Enhanced cardiovascular health: One of the primary risk factors for cardiovascular disease is lack of physical activity. A number of studies have shown that individuals who exercise decrease their risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Regular physical exercise increases the strength of your heart, and a strong heart can pump more blood with less effort.
With the countless benefits of exercise, it is critical each and every Medi-Weightloss® patient incorporate physical activity into his/her life.
References
Kemmler, W., Lauber, D., Weineck, J., Hensen, J., Kalender, W., & Engelke, K. (2004, May 24). Benefits of 2 years of intense exercise on bone density, physical fitness, and blood lipids in early postmenopausal osteopenic women. Archives of Internal Medicine, 164(10), 1084-1091.
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. (July 2003). 14(7 Supplement 2), S108-13.
Blumenthal, J.A., Babyak, M.A., Doraiswamy, P.M., Watkins, L., Hoffman, B.M., Barbour, K.A., … Sherwood, A. (September 2007). Exercise and pharmacotherapy in the treatment of major depressive disorder. Psychosomatic Medicine, 69 (7), 587-96.
Kelley, G.A., Kelley, K.S., & Tran, Z.V. (May 2004). Walking, lipids, and lipoproteins: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Preventive Medicine, 38(5), 651-61.
Pinto, A., Di Raimondo, D., Tuttolomondo, A., Fernandez, P., Arna, V., & Licata, G. (May 2006). Twenty-four hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring to evaluate effects on blood pressure of physical activity in hypertensive patients. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, 16(3), 238-43.
Janssen, I., & Jolliffe, C.J. (March 2006). Influence of physical activity on mortality in elderly with coronary artery disease. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 38(3), 418.