EXERCISE IS THE BEST MEDICINE

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EXERCISE IS THE BEST MEDICINE
http//www.virtualphysicaltherapists.com/
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Exercise is one of the most important lifestyle
choices that significantly impact your health and
adds years to your life. Being physically active
has amazing benefits not only in preventing many
chronic diseases but also aids in treating them.
Benefits of physical fitness include improvement
of brain health and cognition, weight management,
strengthening your muscles and bones, improving
your balance, increasing your ability to perform
physical activities, improving sleep quality,
reducing the risk, and treating many diseases and
cancers. Exercise is the best medicine! Age,
ability, shape, size, sex, and ethnicity do not
matter. Everyone can experience the health
benefits of physical fitness, even prenatally
yes, maternal exercise during pregnancy increases
the babys blood supply resulting in increased
cognition early in life and reduced chronic
diseases later. Yet, nearly 80 of Americans do
not meet the US guidelines for physical activity.
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Yet, nearly 80 of Americans do not meet the US
guidelines for physical activity. Kids should
have at least 60 minutes a day of moderate to
vigorous activity that includes aerobic, muscle,
and bone-strengthening. Adults should have 30
minutes a day of vigorous aerobic activity and at
least two days a week of muscle strengthening.
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Walking vs. Running Which is Better?

• Immediate Health Benefits of Exercise
• One of the unknown benefits of physical fitness
  and activity is an instant improvement of your
  brain health. After moderate-to-vigorous physical
  activity, children 6-13 have improved thinking or
  cognition and reduced short-term feelings of
  anxiety for adults. Regular physical activity can
  help keep your thinking, learning, and judgment
  skills sharp as you age. It can also reduce your
  risk of depression and anxiety and help you sleep
  better.

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Habitual Health Benefits of Exercise

• Those who regularly exercise so that physical
  activity becomes a way of life see numerous
  benefits to physical fitness that include stable
  weight, stronger muscles and bones, fewer chronic
  diseases and cancers, improvements in long-term
  anxiety and deep sleep, and an increased ability
  to plan, organize, and control emotions. There
  are numerous positive effects of exercise on the
  body. Sit less and move more!

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Reasons Why Exercise is Important Prenatal Decre
ased risk of chronic disease Higher IQ Exercise
during pregnancy decreases the risk of chronic
disease for both mother and child. Maternal
exercise also increases the babys cognition.
Children with active mothers have slightly higher
IQs (5 points) at 48 months and may also have a
reduced risk of diabetes and hypertension later
in life. Moms who exercise while pregnant
experience fewer musculoskeletal discomforts and
depressive symptoms. They also keep their weight
gain within normal ranges and have lower blood
pressure and blood sugar levels than moms who do
not exercise.
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3-6 years Improved bone health and weight
status Improved agility and balance 6-17
years Improved cognitive function (performance
on academic achievement tests, executive
function, processing speed, and memory) Reduced
risk of depression Reduced depressed
mood Improved cardiorespiratory and muscular
fitness Improved bone health Improved weight
status or adiposity Fewer symptoms of depression
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Adults Lower risk of all-cause
mortality Cardiometabolic conditions Lower
cardiovascular problems and mortality (including
heart disease and stroke) Lower incidence of
hypertension (high blood pressure) Lower
incidence of type 2 diabetes Cancer Lower
incidence of bladder, breast, colon, endometrium,
esophagus, kidney, stomach, and lung cancers
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Lower risk of all-cause mortality Cardiometabolic
conditions Lower cardiovascular problems and
mortality (including heart disease and
stroke) Lower incidence of hypertension (high
blood pressure) Lower incidence of type 2
diabetes Cancer Lower incidence of bladder,
breast, colon, endometrium, esophagus, kidney,
stomach, and lung cancers
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Brain Health Reduced risk of dementia Improved
cognitive function overall and also notably
following bouts of aerobic activity Improved
quality of life Improved sleep (quality, reduced
daytime sleepiness, frequency of use of
medication to aid sleep) Reduced feelings of
anxiety and depression in healthy people and in
people with existing medical issues Reduced
incidences of depression Reduced long-term
feelings and signs of anxiety (trait anxiety) for
people with and without anxiety disorders
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Weight Status Reduced risk of excessive weight
gain Weight loss and the prevention of weight
regain following initial weight
loss Musculoskeletal Less pain, more
motion. Improved functional ability Better
posture and younger appearance
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Older adults Falls Reduced incidence of falls
and fall-related injuries Physical
Function Improved ability to perform daily
activities Able to stay independent
longer Musculoskeletal Less pain, more
motion. Improved functional ability Better
posture and younger appearance
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Individuals with pre-existing Medical
Conditions Reduced All-cause mortality Reduced
Breast Cancer all-cause and mortality Reduced
Colorectal cancer all-cause and
mortality Reduced Prostate cancer reduced
mortality Osteoarthritis Decrease pain and
improved function and quality of
life Hypertension Reduced risk of progression
of cardiovascular disease and increased blood
pressure over time Type 2 diabetes Reduced
progression of disease indicators hemoglobin
A1c, blood pressure, blood lipids, and body mass
index Multiple sclerosis Improved walking and
physical fitness Dementia Improved
cognition Some conditions with impaired executive
function Improved cognition
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General Health Benefits of Exercise

• 1. Weight Management
• Physical activity plays a critical role in weight
  management along with your eating patterns. You
  gain weight when you eat and drink more calories
  than you burn. To lose weight, you need to
  consume less and exercise more. A high amount of
  physical activity is required to lose weight
  unless you also adjust your eating patterns.
  Getting to and staying at a healthy weight
  requires regular physical activity and healthy
  eating.

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2. Strengthen Your Bones and Muscles Having
strong muscles and bones is essential to your
ability to move and function. As babies and
toddlers, it is critical to improving your
strength to establish a foundation, and as you
age, its essential to maintain your strength to
keep moving. Contrary to popular belief,
inactivity increases your chances of developing
musculoskeletal discomfort and arthritis. As the
saying goes, If you dont use it, you lose it.
If you sit on a couch all day, your muscles
shrivel up, and your body will also start to pull
calcium from your bones, making your bones
weaker. On the other hand, if you walk or run,
the benefits of physical fitness cause your
muscles to get stronger, and so do your bones and
joints in response to the pounding on the
ground. 3. Fountain of Youth Stronger muscles and
bones improve your posture. Effects of exercise
on the body are also good for your skin and
cardiovascular health giving you a more youthful
appearance.
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4. Cardiovascular Disease Heart disease and
stroke are two leading causes of death in the
United States. Physical activity strengthens the
heart, the most important muscle in the body. A
stronger heart pumps out more blood with each
beat. The benefits of physical fitness and
regular activity also include lowering your blood
pressure and improving cholesterol levels. 5.
Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome Regular
physical activity can reduce your risk of
developing type 2 diabetes and metabolic
syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of
conditions that occur together, increasing your
risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2
diabetes. These conditions include increased
blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat
around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol or
triglyceride levels.
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• 6. Some Cancers
• Being physically active lowers your risk of
  developing several cancers. Those who participate
  in greater amounts of physical activity have
  reduced risks of developing cancers of the
• Bladder
• Breast
• Colon (proximal and distal)
• Endometrium
• Esophagus (adenocarcinoma)
• Kidney
• Lung
• Stomach (cardia and non-cardia adenocarcinoma)

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Cancer patients who exercise have better
treatment outcomes and survival rates. Oncology
providers recommend aerobic and resistance
exercises to help mitigate the side effects of
treatments. Effects of exercises on the body
include reducing fatigue during active treatment
and preserving cardiorespiratory fitness,
physical functioning, and strength. Exercise has
a low risk for side effects and adverse events
and may also improve quality of life and reduce
anxiety and depression during treatments. If you
are a cancer survivor, getting regular physical
activity helps give you a better quality of life
and improves your physical fitness.
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7. Improve Your Ability to do Daily Activities
Physically active adults have a lower risk of
functional limitations than those that are
inactive. Being physically active allows you to
play ball with your kids/grandchildren and stay
independent longer. There are numerous benefits
of physical fitness and the ability to do your
daily activities is one of the reasons why
exercise is important. Simple things like opening
a jar, climbing stairs, and running to catch a
train become difficult with inactivity.
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8. Prevent Falls in Seniors It is very important
that seniors stay active by doing a variety of
physical activities to reduce their risk of
falls. Too often seniors are cautious and avoid
challenging their balance, this leads to
weakening muscles and reduced proprioception. A
slight stumble then perpetuates a vicious cycle
of fear and fear avoidance that will further
advance weakness and increase their fall risk.
Falls have significant consequences and usually
lead to injuries such as a hip fracture. The
health benefits of exercise for seniors are
essential for them to stay active and avoid
falls. It is critical that seniors include
physical activities such as aerobic, muscle
strengthening, and balance training to improve
their strength and balance and minimize their
fear of falling. 9. Increase Your Chances of
Living Longer!
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