The reasons for exercising are many indeed. Each day we are reminded of the health enhancing properties associated with exercise. It's hard to believe anyone could say they did not know exercise is good for you. If one actually stops and thinks about for a moment it should become clear the body needs to move. The human body is, after all, a living organism.
So what exactly does this mean? It means all living entities require specific elements (nutrients, movement, water) to remain a living organisms, it’s that simple. Look at some of the choices you make for nourishing your body. Do they actually contain nutrients or are they highly processed substances created in a lab to generate dollars?
Study Shows Inactivity can Make You Sick
Additionally the human body requires a specific level of activity to remain healthy. In fact a study conducted at the University of Hong Kong and the Department of Health turned up some interesting results. The study looked at the level of physical activity of people who died and correlated their level of physical activity with their risk of dying.
Inactivity poses more risk than smoking. Twenty percent of all deaths of people 35 and older were attributed to lack of physical activity. That’s more death than can be attributed to smoking. Looking at specific diseases, risk of death from cancer increased by 45% for men and 28% for women due to lack of physical activity.
Physical Activity Keeps Us Healthy
Many natural healers believe movement is critical for the health of the human body, it was designed to move. Today many people are so inactive they are at the opposite end of the fitness spectrum. They run the risk of developing the diseases attributed to sedentary lifestyles.
These diseases can be prevented or even reversed through exercise. When we examine why movement is so instrumental in preventing disease, it gives us an interesting perspective on how the human body really works. By moving muscles, ligaments, and limbs we massage the tissue and organs of the body. This brings oxygen, enhances flexibility, and moves lymph fluid through the body.
Physical activity gets everything moving in your body. Sweating is good for you as well -- you sweat out toxins. Putting all of this together, we see that physical exercise is extremely beneficial to the human body. In fact the body won't live nearly as long without it. Studies also show that it doesn't take an enormous amount of physical exercise to achieve health-enhancing results. A mere 30 minutes a day of walking, swimming, jogging, cycling or other cardiovascular exercise can have astounding positive health effects.
“The only reason I would take up jogging is so that I could hear heavy breathing again!” Erma Bombeck
Sources:
Erma Bombeck quote, QuoteGarden.com
Chris Christian - Chris Christian has been involved with fitness for over 30 years and personal training for 12 years. In addition he teachs fitness and ...
