What are the benefits of aerobic exercise? Is it so good that everyone needs to talk about it all the time? How great can walking, running and swimming really be?
These are some of the questions that I have heard very often, be it on blogs, forums, questions in fitness magazines and the list goes on. I think the problem is, experts keep talking about how important aerobic exercise is without explaining why and how it helps you.
Therefore, my goal today is for you to read about the benefits of aerobic exercise, and hopefully by the end of this article, you will be convinced that you should invest some time to engage in physical activity.
It would be even better if you enjoyed learning about aerobic exercise so much, that you shared it with your friends, family and colleagues using the button at the end of this page!
What Can Aerobic Exercise Really Do For Me?
One of the best benefits of aerobic exercise would be prevention of diseases. There are a whole range of diseases that regular aerobic activity helps to prevent, but I will be discussing only a few.
Cardiovascular diseases
Cardiovascular diseases are illnesses involving the heart, arteries and some other organs. Certain examples of such diseases would be stroke, heart failure and heart attack.
Regular aerobic workouts actually help to reduce high blood pressure in the arteries by lowering the “bad” cholesterol and increasing “good” cholesterol. This prevents the arteries from getting clogged up.
With clear arteries, your blood pressure is lower and you lower the risk of getting various cardiovascular diseases.
Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis can be prevented through regular exercise. Read more. Aerobic exercise is one of the ways you can prevent the risk.
Basically, regular exercise places stress on your bones. This tells your body to increase the bone density of your bones, making them much stronger. Regular exercise would mean that your body keeps rebuilding your bone tissues.
Weight loss
Out of all the benefits of aerobic exercise, this is probably one that is the most well-known. Aerobic exercise helps to burn fats. Your body needs more oxygen to burn fat and calories.
Since aerobic activity is about increasing the body’s oxygen intake into the heart and lungs, you can be sure that when you engage in regular aerobic exercises, you are on your way to losing those pounds!
Besides diseases, aerobic activity is also responsible for the state of one’s mental fitness.
Cognitive function
Cognitive function basically refers to the thinking and reasoning ability of the brain. More and more studies are concluding that if you engage in regular aerobic activity, the brain remains active, even when you are much older.
Even the elderly can benefit from this if they begin to work out regularly. It doesn’t have to be extremely intensive. They can choose to take a walk every day with family members or friends!
Depression
Regular aerobic activity helps to increase endorphins, a hormone that helps you to feel good. This helps relieve negative feelings, gloominess and therefore prevents depression.
Some people wonder if exercise is enough to cure depression. Well, in severe cases, regular aerobic exercise will not be enough to replace counselling and therapy sessions. However, in mild cases, it can help to prevent and treat depression in the long run.
Final Words
I hope that I’ve shown you enough examples of the various benefits of aerobic exercise. There are many other benefits, but I’ve stated what I felt was most significant.
While humans used to die from lack of nutrition in decades past, most cases of death are due to illnesses such as cardiovascular diseases and osteoporosis.
Since we now know that there are so many benefits of aerobic exercise, I wish that you will feel more motivated to set aside some time to work out. You do not have to exercise like a freak. Aim to work out regularly maybe three times a week for half an hour every time is great enough!
Hard work will always pay off, motivate yourself and you will reduce the risk of getting such diseases.