Endless Reasons to Exercise
Exercise has many purposes and benefits. It does a lot for your health.
Healthy heart
One goal of exercise is to have a strong and healthy heart. Cardio exercises aim to build a strong heart. Cardio exercise raises your heart rate to a high enough level for at least 20 minutes. The minimum heart rate at which your heart benefits depends on age (see the table below). To reap cardio benefits, you should be above the minimum level. You can exercise near the max cardio rate when you are in good shape. Anywhere in this range will strengthen your heart and improve circulation.
Target heart rate table
Age Minimum Heart Rate Max Heart Rate
40 107 157
50 104 152
60 100 146
70 96 141
80 92 135
90 88 130
Table of heart rates based on improved heart rate formula.
Strength
Strong muscles
Another goal of exercise is to make muscles stronger. Muscles need resistance to grow and stay strong. Muscles won’t get stronger unless they work against something. If you don’t use a muscle, your body will think it’s too large and will start to break it down. When you use a muscle, especially when it is pushed close to its limit, your body thinks, ‘I better make that muscle stronger so I can do that really hard thing.‘
Strong bones
Bones also require resistance. When astronauts stay on the space station for a long time, their bones weaken because they don’t have to resist the force of gravity in a spaceship with zero gravity. Resistance is our friend. Exercise strengthens bones as well as muscles.
Flexibility
Maintaining flexibility is another goal of exercise. When you are more flexible, it means your muscles are longer. Longer muscles are better able to cope with different movements. They are also less likely to be injured. Regular stretching as part of an exercise routine can maintain and build flexibility.
Range of motion
Range of motion is how far we can move our joints. Every joint has a range it can move through. If we’re not careful, we’ll lose part of that range as we age. Joints need to be moved through their full range, right to the limits. If we immobilize a joint, the joint freezes up. If we don’t move a joint to its limits, it starts to think it doesn’t need to move that far. Because your body doesn’t want to waste anything, it shortens the ligaments holding joints together. Move every joint through the full range of motion. Move it or lose it.
Balance
Exercise is also vital for balance. Balance is monitored in your inner ear as well as in your muscles. Your arms and legs sense where they are in space, and your inner ear tells your body which way is up and which way you’re moving. Good balance also helps prevent falls. Falls can be dangerous as we age, so keeping balanced is critical. Any exercise that requires balance can improve balance. But one thing is essential---movement. You can’t improve your balance when you are sitting still.
Variety of motion
When we exercise, we should also do a variety of motions. Muscles learn how to move. They are full of nerves that learn the motions we regularly do. This is why it is difficult to learn a new motion. When you first learn to swing a baseball bat or a golf club, it is hard to get it right. Once we have learned a particular motion, our muscles can do it effortlessly. One way to keep your muscles smart is to perform a variety of movements. Try not only to do one type of exercise. Try to do many. For example, try Yoga, Tai Chi, Pilates, callisthenics, and dance. Dance can be perfect as it uses a variety of motions. Try a few types of dance. When you do various exercises, your muscles get smart, and when they are faced with new, odd ways of moving, they will know what to do.
Pleasure
Finally, exercise should be pleasurable. It should be fun. If your activity isn’t enjoyable, you won’t do it. Try a wide variety of exercises and mix them up. Exercise triggers the release of hormones that make you feel good. It also energizes you and makes you happy. Also, when you exercise with someone else, it becomes a social event. Now you’re really firing on all cylinders.
A million reasons
Exercise will improve your life. Period. So don’t put it off. Think of fun activities you can do. And not just one. Do a bunch of different activities and do them regularly. Call a friend to join in. Something happens whenever you’re with people. Come on, get happy---and healthy. We’re giving you a million reasons to make you go.
