If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re already a Trevor Linden Fitness member or into fitness in some way. This is terrific news as regular exercise does so much more than just burn the calories you consumed at lunch. Working out on a regular basis is monumental in improving not only how you look on the outside but how you feel on the inside as well.
Below, we break down how regular exercise affects your life in meaningful ways:
1. Helps you maintain a healthy weight
Maintaining a healthy body mass index (BMO) is important in order to lead a long and prosperous life. Of course, in order to stay at a healthy BMO, a certain effort on the individual’s behalf is required. Leading a junk food diet with zero exercise will catch up to you in the end, which is why regular exercise is vital in order to stay at a healthy weight. So just how much exercise is recommended to stay in shape?
“Adults should strive to accumulate at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous intensity aerobic physical activity per week, in bouts of 10 minutes or more,” the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CESP) state in the Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines.
Muscle and bone strengthening activities at least two days a week are also recommended in order to maintain body strength and flexibility. And exceeding those guidelines certainly won’t hurt you either!
“More is better,” Mark Tremblay, Chair of CESP’s Guidelines Committee says. “So if you’re doing some, do a little bit more. If you’re doing more, do a little bit more still. Really the benefits come progressively.”
Getting into a routine can be tough but there are many different types of exercise programs available today to ensure you stay motivated and excited. To give you some ideas, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) revealed their annual list of the top fitness trends of the year that include a host of diverse workout ideas:
Body weight training. Requiring little equipment and money, bodyweight training is the use of your own body weight as a form of resistance training. This type of of exercise is ideal for those constantly on the go as it can be done any time, in any place.
High-intensity interval training. HIIT consists of short periods of high intensity exercise, followed by a quick rest period. Thanks to its popularity, there are many HIIT group classes available in the Lower Mainland, including at all Trevor Linden gym facilities.
Boot camp. Boot camp may seem intimidating but working out with a group of like-minded individuals with the same goals as you makes this form of exercise both effective and motivating.
Strength training. This type of workout relies solely on weights to work your muscles. Strength training is often used in combination with cardio workouts and is a popular form of cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation.
Yoga. There are many different types of yoga forms being taught today, including Bikram (hot yoga), Yogalates (Pilates and yoga combined), Power Yoga (yoga with a strength building focus) and Ashtanga (a style based on eight principles and done in swift procession).
Group training. Working out in a group makes time fly by and with so many different group classes available today (Zumba, Group Cycling, Synergy, Hoist Roc It) you can rest assured you’ll never get bored working out again.
2. Increases your energy levels
Once you start a regular workout routine, your body goes through a series of positive changes. For starters, you’ll notice an increase in your energy levels. Regular exercise aids in healthy blood circulation that also improves one’s energy levels. A study done at the University of Georgia found that adults who engaged in low to moderate aerobic exercise three days for 6 weeks reported feeling more energized and less fatigued.
36 young adults were put into three different groups- a low-intensity exercise group, a moderate-intensity exercise group, and a non-exercising group. At the end of the study, the low and moderate-intensity exercise groups both experienced a 20% increase in energy levels, with the low intensity group reporting a 65% drop in feelings of fatigue. Wow. This just goes to show how important regular exercise is for the healthy flow and maintenance of blood and energy levels.
3. Boosts your mood
Exercise has a sort of domino effect on the body. High energy levels increase the amount of endorphins found in the body, chemicals which regulate happiness. How does this happen exactly? When you work out, your body releases endorphins, which interact with receptors in the brain to reduce your perception of pain. Therefore, a person will experience more feelings of positivity and happiness during and after a workout.
Dr. Joseph Goldberg further expanded on the subject in an article for medical publication WebMd. “Endorphins act as analgesics, which means they diminish the perception of pain. They also act as sedatives. They are manufactured in your brain, spinal cord, and many other parts of your body and are released in response to brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. The neuron receptors endorphins bind to the same ones that bind to some pain medicines. However, unlike with morphine, the activation of these receptors by the body’s endorphins does not lead to addiction or dependence.”
With such positive feedback on the body, it’s not surprising exercise is one of the top non-prescription treatments doctors recommend to individuals suffering from depression and anxiety.
4. Builds a strong core
Your core muscles are behind every single movement and action you perform throughout the day. Be it bending down to tie your shoes, throwing a basketball, or even sitting rigid at a desk all day, their job is to provide smooth, fluid transition from one activity to another-which is why having a weak core is no laughing matter.
Harvard Medical School’s own health publication reiterated this point when it stressed the importance of building a strong core. “Weak or inflexible core muscles can impair how well your arms and legs function. And that saps power from many of the moves you make. Properly building up your core cranks up the power. A strong core also enhances balance and stability. Thus, it can help prevent falls and injuries during sports or other activities.”
Regular stretching of these core muscles through exercise helps keep the muscles strong and your body powerful enough to handle the dozens of minuscule tasks you perform every day. Core stretches even help prevent chronic back pain, which over 80% of Canadians will experience at some point in their lives. Avoid lower back pain altogether and keep to your core stretches the next time you work out.
5. Lowers your chances of getting heart disease
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in Canada, accounting for 29% of all deaths in the country (Statistics Canada, 2011). A lot of prevention efforts have been put into place because of this startling number, with exercise being at the top of recommended solutions list. Cardiovascular disease affects all areas of the cardiovascular system, from the heart to the blood vessels that run throughout the body and brain. A sedentary lifestyle leads to the constriction of these veins and arteries, and can result in a blocked passage or block flow in the brain. Such blockage results in high blood pressure, which in dire situations can result in a heart attack or stroke.
Leading an active lifestyle, however, can help lower blood pressure and aid in the blood vessels’ ability to efficiently send oxygen to the rest of the body. “As one’s ability to transport and use oxygen improves, regular daily activities can be performed with less fatigue. This is particularly important for patients with cardiovascular disease, whose exercise capacity is typically lower than that of healthy individuals. There is also evidence that exercise training improves the capacity of the blood vessels to dilate in response to exercise or hormones, consistent with better vascular wall function and an improved ability to provide oxygen to the muscles during exercise,” stated Jonathan Myers, PhD, in the American Heart Association Journal.
6. Improves your memory
Researchers at the University of British Columbia recently discovered that regular aerobic exercise could significantly help to improve various forms of memory. In the study, dozens of women aged 70-80, all with mild cognitive impairment, were asked to participate in a form of physical activity- be it lifting weights twice week or going for walks. One group focused solely on stretching and toning.
After six months, the women took the same memory tests they were asked to do at the start of the study. Scientists learned that the women who took part in regular exercise like walking or lifting weights saw an improvement in their memory retention, while those who kept to toning exercises actually experienced an increase in cognitive impairment.
More specifically, researchers learned that while both exercise groups improved equally on tests of spatial memory, those women who had gone for walks throughout the six months saw greater improvement in verbal memory than those who hadn’t.
In short, regular aerobic exercise has a significant positive impact on different types of memory (be it spatial or verbal), depending directly on the type of physical training one does.
7. Gives you better sleep
We’ve known this for a while but now it’s official: Research has revealed that exercise plays a huge role in getting proper, restful sleep – and we all know how important sleep is to the body. A good night’s sleep is crucial in regulating hormone and antibody production, cell restoration and cleansing the body of toxins. Without a minimum eight hours of shut eye, the mind and body go into a sharp decline and we pay for it the next day. Studies show that daytime exercise may promote the most restorative stages of sleep, allowing for more quality sleep overall. Regular exercise also helps strengthen circadian rhythms, which control daytime alertness and nighttime sleepiness. Regular exercise has been proven to be so powerful in promoting better sleep, that even people with known sleeping disorders like insomnia have experienced improvements after a taking part in regular bouts of physical activity.
It’s clear now that a proper workout does more than just burn calories. It strives to help your entire body and mind function properly-both in the present and in the future.
If you’re hesitant to take the first steps into the gym or doubtful of your own physical abilities, rest assured you’re not alone in thinking this. But as it’s been proven over and over again with each individual that experiences a positive change with exercise, regular physical activity is what your body was made to do. With realistic expectations and just the right amount of dedication, you’ll fall in love with working out just like the rest of us have.
