So how does exercise provide all those wonderful health benefits? First, aerobic exercise has a major effect on the heart and the lungs. The heart is a large muscle with a specific job to do, that is, to pump blood around the body carrying oxygen, glucose and other nutrients to the major organs and tissues. All muscles get stronger when they are regularly made to do more work, and get weaker when they’re underused. The heart is no exception.

With exercise, heart muscle gets thicker and stronger, and is able to pump more blood with lesser effort. You’ll notice the effect of this change after just a few weeks of regular aerobic exercise. Your heart won’t have to beat as fast when you exert yourself (like by running upstairs, etc.) and it will revert to its normal rate of beating when you stop and rest.

The improvement that exercise brings can be easily demonstrated by comparing the heart rate of a physically fit person with that of someone who is inactive. The heart of an average adult pumps about nine pints of blood around the body each minute. An inactive person’s heart has to beat 80 or 90 times a minute to do this, whereas a fit person’s heart beats only 50-60 times per minute. A trained athlete’s heart may beat as little as 30 times a minute. It’s easy to see whose heart is more efficient!!!

Daily tasks, such as carrying the shopping or doing housework or home repairs, will seem easier when you exercise regularly, and you will experience fewer aches and pains and minor injuries. You’ll also sleep much better and wake up feeling really refreshed and ready to take on daily challenges.

Exercise has many other amazing properties as well. You will feel much happier, more relaxed and be less prone to tension and headaches, anxiety attacks and stress. Exercise can work as a pain killer and mood enhancer because it causes the body to release chemicals called “endorphins”. These substances have a similar chemical structure and effect to morphine and only these ones are natural, have no side effects and are excellent for your health and general well being.

Endorphins act on the nervous system in several ways. They reduce pain by blocking pain signals at particular sites in the brain and spinal cord. However, they also act on special places in a part of brain called”hypothalamus”, which is responsible for determining mood. It is this action that is thought to give the athletes the feeling of euphoria known as jogger’s high, experienced particularly after a long run. This feeling can be so pleasurable that athletes may become addicted to training, unwilling to give it up for a single day - even when ill.

In addition to the all-round health benefits of regular exercise, your lovemaking will also improve. You’ll feel like having sex more often, it will last longer and you’ll enjoy it more. These benefits will come to you within weeks of starting regular exercise and stay with you as long as you continue.

Exercise even helps to alleviate the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome, such as fatigue, abdominal pains, mood swings and water retention, as well as menopausal symptoms, such as hot flushes, sleep disorders, anxiety and depressions.

Any exercise in addition to your normal level of activity will benefit your health in a very short time. And the more exercise you do, within reason, the greater the benefits. If you lead a very inactive life, a simple daily twenty-minute walk will quickly make you fitter and more energetic, sharpen your mind and senses, and give you that extra zest for life.

You should aim to fit in at least three brisk twenty-minute walks each week - in the park, around the block or even in your own living room. Also perhaps add some other sporting activities to improve your strength and suppleness.

As per Wikipedia

Physical exercise is the performance of some activity in order to develop or maintain physical fitness and overall health. It is often directed toward also honing athletic ability or skill. Frequent and regular physical exercise is an important component in the prevention of some of the diseases of affluence such as cancer, heart disease, cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Exercises are generally grouped into three types depending on the overall effect they have on the human body:

Flexibility exercises such as stretching improve the range of motion of muscles and joints.

Aerobic exercises such as walking and running focus on increasing cardiovascular endurance.

Anaerobic exercises such as weight training, functional training or sprinting increase short-term muscle strength.

Physical exercise is considered important for maintaining physical fitness including healthy weight; building and maintaining healthy bones, muscles, and joints; promoting physiological well-being; reducing surgical risks; and strengthening the immune system.

Proper nutrition is at least as important to health as exercise. When exercising it becomes even more important to have good diet to ensure the body has the correct ratio of macronutrients whilst providing ample micronutrients, this is to aid the body with the recovery process following strenuous exercise.

Proper rest and recovery is also as important to health as exercise, otherwise the body exists in a permanently injured state and will not improve or adapt adequately to the exercise.

The above two factors can be compromised by psychological compulsions (eating disorders such as exercise bulimia, anorexia, and other bulimias), misinformation, a lack of organization, or a lack of motivation. These all lead to a decreased state of health.

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness can occur after any kind of exercise, particularly if the body is in an unconditioned state relative to that exercise.

Medical experts have traditionally defined health as the absence of disease, but we now know that you can do a lot more to improve your health than simply avoiding disease. Broadly speaking, health influences that can be categorized as a chance (the factors that you can’t change, such as your genes) and choice (those that you can, such as your diet).

The “chance” factors are the environment in which you live (the air and water quality as well as the availability of food and medical care, the pace of society and so on) and your genetic make-up (your likelihood of developing certain illness and the strength and longevity of your organs). There is no doubt that long lived parents produce long lived children. If both parents live over the age of 70 then their children are twice as likely as the general population to reach 90 or 100. Genetics, however, can also lead to health problems, including inherited disorders and a propensity to develop certain illness or diseases. Unfortunately, you can’t change the genes you were born with (at least not yet!), but being aware of your family’s medical history can alert you to illness, such as heart disease, to which you maybe prone. You can then take appropriate actions to reduce your risks and safeguard your health. For example, you can lower your risk of heart disease by healthy eating, exercise and taking steps to lower high blood pressures.

“Choice” factors are the ones that only you can change, such as your diet, exercise routine and the care you take of your body- that is, your whole lifestyle. We help you to make the right decisions for your all-round health, detailing the steps you can take towards a happier, healthier you.