Longevity To Weight Loss; 6 Wonderful Health Benefits Of Regular Exercise

Exercise isn't just about weight loss, it's also about boosting brain health and living longer. Here are all the benefits of regular workouts.

Everybody wants to lead a healthy and happy life and delay ageing for as long as possible. Yet taking simple measures to boost overall well-being find roadblocks due to our sedentary way of life and busy routine. Doing regular exercise is one of the healthiest habits we can inculcate for lifelong results. Exercise not only helps you lose weight, but also keeps many chronic diseases away. Regular workouts support your brain health too and mental health issues like depression, dementia and Alzheimer's disease can be kept away too. With an active lifestyle, it is possible to manage many old age problems effectively.

Research supports all these benefits of physical activity be it boosting self-esteem, sleep quality to moods and energy. When you step out to take a walk or do cycling, you also get rid of all the accumulated stress of the day.

Studies also prove that people who exercise have a lower risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke and some cancers; this also reduces risk of early death.

"I often hear patients say a good workout relieves excess stress. That’s because exercise reduces cortisol – the stress hormone. Too much cortisol and you become insulin resistant and store belly fat. Too much cortisol also makes you crave sugar and carbs and seek comfort food," says Dr Mark Hyman, American physician and author in his recent social media post.

Dr Hyman shares amazing benefits of regular exercise:

Better insulin sensitivity
Exercise makes your cells and muscles more sensitive to insulin so you don’t need as much. Less insulin means less belly fat.

Less stress
I often hear patients say a good workout relieves excess stress. That’s because exercise reduces cortisol – the stress hormone. Too much cortisol and you become insulin resistant and store belly fat. Too much cortisol also makes you crave sugar and carbs and seek comfort food.

Better brain health
Your brain on exercise performs so much better. Exercise improves memory, learning, and concentration. Vigorous exercise is a better antidepressant than Prozac. Exercise creates brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDMF), which is basically miracle grow for your brain. When you exercise, your brain becomes more elastic. Exercise also helps to improve your mood, boost your energy, and reduce overall stress in your body and mind.

Reduced risk for chronic disease
Exercise does this through several mechanisms. It protects your heart and reduces your risk of heart attack and stroke. It reduces inflammation (the cause of almost every disease of aging). And it balances hormones, therefore reducing breast and other common cancers.

Enhanced detoxification
Besides stimulating the colon, intense exercise allows your body to release toxins through your skin. It boosts detoxification of environmental chemicals. Vigorous exercise will help you work up a sweat, but gentle exercise keeps your circulation going and flushes out all the toxic fluids that build up in your lymphatic system. If your daily exercise routine doesn’t cause you to sweat profusely, take a steam or infrared sauna, if possible.

Improved sexual function
Increased circulation and more energy are two of many reasons that consistent exercise can spark up your sex life.