Did you know that when you’re physically active, your immune system’s activity ramps up too, keeping you from getting ill? Just 20 minutes of exercise a day can boost your immunity.
Get started at work. Try
- taking a 10 minute walk between your car and your office
- always taking the stairs
- walking to a colleague’s office instead of calling or emailing
- taking a lunch break every day and getting outside
- stretching regularly at your desk
Need more convincing? Exercise promises other surprising benefits.
1. Blunts pain
Although extra care is warranted when exercising with injuries, physical activity can reduce some types of pain.
Chronic back pain is one complaint that may be improved by exercise-based therapy. Plus, a recent investigation into the role of aerobic exercise in men with chronic prostatitis showed decreased pain levels in the study group.
2. Prevents brain decline
Regular moderate-to-vigorous exercise over the lifespan reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease by as much as 40 percent. Exercising at least three times per week may cut the risk of dementia by 21 percent.
Even without a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, cognitive function tends to decline over the lifespan. Regular physical activity can preserve the ability to perform mental tasks like recalling dates and locations.
3. Helps us face stress
Whether you are clinically depressed or just feeling bogged down by the pressures of daily life, you will likely benefit from exercise. Physical training actually changes the body’s response to psychological strain. Compared to their untrained counterparts, trained athletes have lower heart rates and calmer mood states in the face of pressure. Blunting the stress response through activity may shield the body from the effects of chronic stress.
4. Helps us live longer
Compared to mildly active men, those who are highly active cut their risk of death from <any> cause by 22 percent. Increasing your moderate-intensity physical activity by just one hour per week can decrease your risk of death from all causes by 4 percent.
5. Cuts heart attack and stroke risk
A recent study demonstrated that owning both a car and a television increases the risk of heart attack by 27 percent. On the flip side, incorporating moderate physical activity into your life will decrease the risk of heart attack or stroke by up to 63 percent.
6. Can curb cancer risk
Cancer does not discriminate: it affects men of all ages and ethnicities. Nonetheless, some risk factors are within your control and may significantly decrease your risk of getting cancer. Exercise is one of these factors.
Leisure-time physical activity decreases colon cancer risk in men by 20 percent. Prostate cancer rates drop by almost 10 percent in exercising men, while trends in kidney cancer are similar.
7. Protects against diabetes
Physical activity decreases the risk of developing diabetes, by as much as 65 percent in some studies. The protective effect of exercise is not reliant upon weight loss: risk reduction is independent of body weight.
