5 More Benefits of Regular Exercise
If you’re like most people, your motivation for joining Cape Carteret Aquatic & Wellness is to lose weight and get in shape. While those are certainly worthwhile goals, hitting the gym consistently offers numerous health benefits that you may not have considered. You have probably heard that exercise is a natural cure for depression. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins that interact with the receptors in your brain. This can help to naturally balance levels of serotonin that could be causing a prolonged depressed mood.
Here are five other health benefits to making exercise part of your everyday life:
1 – It helps to prevent osteoporosis by stimulating cells in the bones of your hips, spine, and legs when your feet hit the ground. Without these exercises, your bones are naturally subject to thinning over the years. You can have an even greater impact on preventing osteoporosis when you engage in high-impact activities such as tennis, jumping rope, and dancing. Strength training is yet another way you can keep your bones from becoming too brittle.
2 – It reduces blood pressure, even if you already have pre-hypertension or hypertension. That is because it makes it easier for blood to flow more freely through your blood vessels. Strength training, walking, swimming, and cycling are all ideal to lowering blood pressure.
3 – Physical activity can reduce the risk of colon cancer by up to 25 percent as well as breast cancer and endometrial cancer by up to 20 percent. It also reduces the risk of colon polyps that can lead to colon cancer.
4 – If you have pre-diabetes or diabetes, regular exercise is an excellent way to lower your blood sugar. That is because it increases your body’s sensitivity to insulin so it can make better use of it. Although you should always follow your doctor’s advice regarding medication, you may be able to delay starting on diabetes medication or take a smaller dose just by exercising. Another benefit is that it helps you lose weight, which is critical for good diabetes management.
5 – It helps to prevent neurological disorders like Parkinson’s disease and stroke. People with Parkinson’s lack the brain chemical dopamine, which exercise helps to increase. By exercising strenuously at least 30 minutes a day, you can also decrease your risk of stroke by 20 percent.
These are just some of the health benefits you can experience when you start exercising. As a member of our gym, you can come in 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you need help deciding on an exercise routine or want to know more about our equipment, just ask.