Daily Times

Good health could not be achieved through one thing but some important factors together make you healthy. These factors are physical activity, healthy diet, and adequate amount of water, adequate sleep and healthy body weight and good mental health. All these factors have great impact on our health and most important of them all is physical activity.

Physical activity is the most important determinant of health. Physical activity is the need of our body and it helps us stay active all day and keeps us in good shape. Moderate or intense exercise on a regular basis is extremely significant for health. Physical activity has its own good effects on other life style factors. Both these things work together and bring the best of our health.

Exercise improves efficiency of our cardiovascular system which in turn helps more oxygen and nutrients to reach our muscles. It also improves and boosts our immune system to work stronger against diseases. Exercise helps us maintain a healthy weight. It also keeps our muscles and joints flexible and strong. Exercise keeps us in perfect alignment and improves the coordination and balance of the body.
It is now imprudent to say that advancing age brings diseases to body. Nowadays without exercise a lot of disease can get you no matter how young you are. Having a habit of daily exercise can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, colon and breast cancer, depression and stroke. Naturally our bodies are designed to stay active and without physical activity our bodies get corroded slowly every day until a certain disease catch us up.

We don’t pay attention to importance and effects of exercise on our life style and don’t incorporate it but we really need to know the wonders it brings to our health.

WATER
Drinking adequate amount of water every day especially with physical activity is very important. We do exercise every day to make our muscles and joints strong but drinking good amount of water regulates our body temperature and also lubricates our joints and makes them more flexible. Through exercise our inner system works fast and expels the toxics. Water helps create more sweat and urine to flush wastes from our bodies. Drinking adequate amount of water supplies oxygen to our muscles, which is very important and helpful during exercise. Doing any kind of physical activity increases our thirst and in turn makes us drink more water. There is no scientific evidence based on the advice of 8-ounce of glasses of water. The amount of water we need depends on one’s individual needs and circumstances, including activity and climate. However, several studies have recommended 2.7 liters of water intake for women and 3.7 liters for men depending on climate and activity.

HEALTHY DIET
Exercise along with healthy diet is a most effective way to lose weight. A healthy diet consists of whole grains, proteins, fiber, fruits and vegetables and nuts and legumes. The biggest benefit of healthy diet and exercise is that it holds off many diseases. Maintaining a healthy diet provides important nutrients to the body and doesn’t let us gain unnecessary weight and boosts our immune system. On the other hand, exercise helps improve inner function of our bodies, increases digestion rate, and is the best way to lose weight safely and reliably. Exercise and healthy diet is the major factor in preventing heart diseases.

SLEEP
We don’t know but a good amount of physical activity give us good and healthy sleep at night. A good amount of aerobic activity increases the amount of slow wave sleep in our body. Slow wave sleep refers to deep sleep, when the brain and body gets a chance to rejuvenate. Hitting gym or doing any physical activity in the morning is the best time and will help you sleep longer and deeper. Exercise in the afternoon will rise your temperature and it will fall at night which will make you drowsy to sleep. Evening workout is not the best option, but it’s still not bad. If you strive for 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise every week then your sleep quality will be improved.

DEPRESSION
Exercise is not just about aerobic capacity of muscles or keeping our body in shape but it has profound effects on our mental health as well. Physical activity can treat mild to moderate depression as effectively as an anti-depressant medication. For several reasons exercise is a powerful depression fighter. Our brain releases endorphins a hormone, which is known to induce feelings of calmness and well-being and makes us feel good. It also promotes neural growth, reduces inflammation, new activity patterns that makes us feel calm and increases our memory. A study on the effects of exercise on mental health has shown that physical activity like running for 15 minutes or walking for an hour can reduce depression by 26%.

ANXIETY
Exercise is also a natural and anti-anxiety treatment. Our mind becomes packed with irrelevant thoughts and negative feelings when we are stressed, which leads to anxiety. But exercise boosts our mood, gives us a feeling of openness and calmness. It relaxes our mind and makes us think more positively and help us make better decisions. The chemicals released in our minds after exercise brings positivity and keeps anxiety at bay.

Having a habit of physical activity every day is the most important factor for our health and we always ignore it. A healthy lifestyle could not be achieved without exercise. Working out daily along with other important health lifestyles will help us stay active, healthy, and strong and will fight against diseases and boost our mood and refresh our minds. The key to a long and healthy life is keeping our bodies active and strong with workout.