7 Benefits of Regular Physical Activity

You know exercise is good for you, but do you know how good? From boosting your mood to improving your sex life, find out how exercise can improve your life. At Fit Solutions you will be motivated to exercise intently and enjoy all the benefits described in this great article from the Mayo Clinic.

By Mayo Clinic Staff

Want to feel better, have more energy and perhaps even live longer? Look no further than exercise. The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore. The benefits of exercise are yours for the taking, regardless of your age, sex or physical ability. Need more convincing? Check out these seven ways exercise can improve your life.

No. 1: Exercise controls weight

Exercise can help prevent excess weight gain or help maintain weight loss. When you engage in physical activity, you burn calories. The more intense the activity, the more calories you burn. You don’t need to set aside large chunks of time for exercise to reap weight-loss benefits. If you can’t do an actual workout, get more active throughout the day in simple ways — by taking the stairs instead of the elevator or revving up your household chores.

No. 2: Exercise combats health conditions and diseases

Worried about heart disease? Hoping to prevent high blood pressure? No matter what your current weight, being active boosts high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good,” cholesterol and decreases unhealthy triglycerides. This one-two punch keeps your blood flowing smoothly, which decreases your risk of cardiovascular diseases. In fact, regular physical activity can help you prevent or manage a wide range of health problems and concerns, including stroke, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression, certain types of cancer, arthritis and falls.

No. 3: Exercise improves mood

Need an emotional lift? Or need to blow off some steam after a stressful day? A workout at the gym or a brisk 30-minute walk can help. Physical activity stimulates various brain chemicals that may leave you feeling happier and more relaxed. You may also feel better about your appearance and yourself when you exercise regularly, which can boost your confidence and improve your self-esteem.

No. 4: Exercise boosts energy

Winded by grocery shopping or household chores? Regular physical activity can improve your muscle strength and boost your endurance. Exercise and physical activity deliver oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and help your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. And when your heart and lungs work more efficiently, you have more energy to go about your daily chores.

No. 5: Exercise promotes better sleep

Struggling to fall asleep? Or to stay asleep? Regular physical activity can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. Just don’t exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to fall asleep.

No. 6: Exercise puts the spark back into your sex life

Do you feel too tired or too out of shape to enjoy physical intimacy? Regular physical activity can leave you feeling energized and looking better, which may have a positive effect on your sex life. But there’s more to it than that. Regular physical activity can lead to enhanced arousal for women. And men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than are men who don’t exercise.

No. 7: Exercise can be fun

Exercise and physical activity can be a fun way to spend some time. It gives you a chance to unwind, enjoy the outdoors or simply engage in activities that make you happy. Physical activity can also help you connect with family or friends in a fun social setting. So, take a dance class, hit the hiking trails or join a soccer team. Find a physical activity you enjoy, and just do it. If you get bored, try something new.

The bottom line on exercise

Exercise and physical activity are great ways to feel better, gain health benefits and have fun. As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day. If you want to lose weight or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to exercise more. Remember to check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program, especially if you haven’t exercised for a long time, have chronic health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes or arthritis, or you have any concerns.

First evaluation is free. For more information call (203) 650-2972.

Why Personal Training

According to IDEA Health and Fitness Association (www.ideafit.com) “There’s a reason movie stars and financial moguls use personal trainers. The benefit of working with a personal trainer is one of the fastest, easiest, most successful ways to improve your health and fitness. In fact, the benefits of personal training have proven so effective that it is has spread well beyone the realm of the rich and famous. Today personal trainers are used by people of all fitness, age and economic levels”

Following are reasons why working with a personal trainer will provide you with huge benefits.

Correct Technique

Every exercise, whether free weights, machines or body resistance has a correct form to maximize results and minimize injuries. We will show you the proper technique for each exercise and keep you on track to always do it correctly. Take for example a simple bicep curl. We observe many people doing this exercise incorrectly and as a result they get little or no benefit. If you’re going to take the time to perform an exercise, why not do it the correct way and get the most results for your effort.

Enough Intensity

Lifting, either with free weights or machines is all about improving the intensity of the stimulus to the muscle. That’s what promotes muscle growth. Working with not enough intensity is virtually useless. We will make sure that your intensity level is adequate for what you are wanting to accomplish.

Steady cardio at a not high enough level does not accomplish much. High intensity interval training burns up to 9 times as much fat as steady cardio training. Twenty minutes of cardio traning going all out for 30 seconds followed by 90 seconds of slowing down will accomplish more than one hour of straight cardio.

We will help you to avoid wasting time by developing efficient, targeted protocals to help you improve your health and strenght.

Help with Committment

Sticking to well intentioned plans is one of the biggest challenges exercisers face. We will provide you modivation to create a lifestyle that places a high level of priorty on health and activity. We will help you brainstorm ways to overcome your obstacles. Benefit from the Buddy System. What could be better than making a commitment to regularly meeting with someone who will provide you with individual attention and support?

Diet and Accountability

We all need to eat to stay alive. Eating should be enjoyable. There is a big difference between eating the right foods or not. We will guide you in selecting the right foods to promote enjoyment of food, weight loss and overall health. We will also show you how to regulate those hungry yearnings that can trap you. If you’re going to make the commitment to exercise, why deminish your results by not eating correctly?

More Information to Consider

Hydration

An estimated 75% of all people are chronically dehydrated. Studies clearly show that this results in a serious lessening in both mental and physical performance. The recommendation is six to eight cups of water per day. If you are active should drink twice that amount because you need to replenish the fluild you lose. This will also help deminish your appetite.

A Pound of Fat Vs. a Pound of Muscle – Debunking a Myth.

From Livestrong.com By Linda Tarr Kent

When it comes to a pound of muscle vs.a pound of body fat, gym myths abound. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat, meaning it burns more calories when you are at rest, but the level of this activity often is overstated. Another common statement that 1 lb of muscle weighs more than 1 lb of fat brings smiles to exercise physiologists who point out that 1 lb.is 1lb., regardless of what it’s made up of. Still, pound for pound, muscle does take up less space than fat.

Muscle is more dense than fat, which means it takes up less space. While you may have heard that muscle takes up one-third the space of fat, the truth is a bit less dramatic. Muscle takes up approximately four-fifths as much space. Two people may be the same height and weight, but the person with the higher body fat percentage will wear a larer clothing size.

First evaluation is free. For more information call (203) 650-2972.