What are the Physical Benefits of Exercise?

Exercise is often thought of as activities that help a person lose weight or prevent weight gain. Having a body that is slimmer and trimmer is certainly one of the physical benefits of exercise, but there are many others. These include strengthening the bones, strengthening the muscles, and reducing the effects of aging.

Exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. Many people want to change or improve their bodies. A man, for example, may want to lose weight, so he may rely on diet pills. A woman may want a more flattering stomach, so she may have a liposuction procedure done. These people may achieve their goals without regular physical activity, but they also deny themselves the other physical benefits of exercise.

Diet pills may help a man shed weight but they will not help him build or strengthen his muscles. The physical benefits of exercise are generally experienced simultaneously. Exercise has the ability to help a person change his body shape, make him stronger, and make his muscles more prominent at the same time. This benefit is not limited to males and the types of exercises that produce these results are not limited to weight lifting.

Exercise also strengthens bones, which becomes more important the older a person gets. Bones go through a natural process of breaking down and rebuilding. As people grow older, however, the rebuilding process reduces unless it is stimulated. Physical activity produces that stimulation and, therefore, helps decrease the likelihood of conditions such as osteoporosis.

Many people are concerned with looking older. Slowing and reversing the effects of aging are benefits of physical exercise. Cellulite, for example, can make a young woman appear older than she is. The appearance of cellulite can be diminished with basic exercises such as walking or jogging. Wrinkles are another sign of aging that can be reduced by exercise since physical activity tends to improve the condition of skin.

Exercise also reduces the adverse physical effects a person feels when she ages. People who engage in regular activities tend to be more fit than people of a similar age who do not. Their endurance, stamina, and energy levels are often noticeably higher. Furthermore, it is widely believed that active individuals are less likely to experience certain health conditions such as heart and lung diseases.

There are a lot of exercises that pregnant women are warned to avoid. This does not mean that pregnant women should not exercise at all. To the contrary, pregnant women are often encouraged to engage in certain types of fitness activities. When they do so, many reap one of the physical benefits of exercise — less difficult labor and delivery.