WHY YOU SHOULD START EXERCISING
In a family of 6, I was the fattest of them all. With my extended family, I was still the fattest.
I remember sitting in the sitting room on some Sunday evenings and going through old pictures, just to see if maybe an uncle, an aunt, or even a granddad or grandma were fat when they were my age.
Honestly, it never bothered me until I turned 16. I became more aware of my body, the broad shoulders, fat arms, big belly, and fat cheeks.
I recall a friend telling me my arms looked like that of a mother of 3. It wasn't funny.
To my mum, I wasn't fat and in fact, there were other people fatter than me and they seemed just fine with it, so why was I bothered?
Answer: They had people in their family who looked like them. It was just me in both my nuclear and extended family.
I wanted to do something about it. I did something. I exercised.
Back then I didn't have a phone or a laptop, so I couldn't get any guide on exercising, so I just did it by instinct.
I did exercises that I later came to find were called:
Inchworms
Jumping jacks
Standing bicycle crunches
Alternating leg raises
Side lunges
Upward plank
I also did some known exercises like jogging in one place, situps, and mountain climbers.
At the time, these were tough exercises and my goal was only to lose some weight, "perhaps the boy next door would notice me then" I thought.
There are different types of exercises: Strength, aerobics, balance, coordination and agility, flexibility, and mobility. And there are several benefits of exercising.
Perhaps you've picked up exercising as a routine to help you shed some weight, well along with that benefit comes a ton of other benefits which we will be discussing in this article.
SO WHAT EXACTLY DOES IT MEAN TO EXERCISE?
Matter of fact, exercising isn't so complex. Being able to stay physically or mentally active is simply put, exercising.
Now what makes exercises different for people is the intensity of the exercise, how much work you put in, and how much time you spend. Also, the focus of the exercise is another factor.
For instance, when you are mentally exercising (e.g Yoga) your body doesn't need to burn calories. Now the time you put in, the intensity of work, and the focus of the exercise are completely different from that of a person who's looking to burn fat.
So the definition of exercise is completely subjective.
BENEFITS OF EXERCISING
Well, as I had said, regardless of what your purpose of exercising might be, exercising is like a buy-one-get-one-free package. You want to lose weight? Well with that comes strong bones and muscles and a ton of other things you'll find out below.
Here are some benefits of exercising:
EXERCISE FOR RELAXATION
You just returned from work, after a hectic day and you are thinking "I should get a massage to help me relax". Good thinking, but what if the spa is closed before you finish work and you live alone, so no one can help you with that?
Exercise!
As ironic as that might sound, there are actually some really good stress-relieving exercises that will not only relax your muscle tone but also help improve your sleep quality.
Examples of such exercises are dead bugs, child pose, or even swimming.
IMPROVED MEMORY
You ever heard of how the brain damages by lack of oxygen? Well, apart from radiation, I do not know what would make the brains of a healthy person, under normal circumstances (which radiation isn't by the way) lack oxygen, but I do know what can improve the supply of oxygen to a person's brain.
As we exercise, our heart rate increases, hence, promoting blood and oxygen flow to the brain. This can stimulate the production of hormones that enhance the growth of brain cells and improve memory. Healthy brain, healthy memory.
Generally, most forms of physical exercise will help with this.
EXERCISE FOR SKIN THERAPY
After drinking water and eating healthy, the next thing that follows when it comes to having healthy glowing skin is exercise.
When oxidative stress occurs due to poor environmental exposure or the junk we eat, the body's antioxidant defense may begin to fail due to the accumulation of oxidative stress, so cells are damaged by free radicals.
Exercising promotes blood flow, promoting rejuvenation of cells and this positively impacts your skin.
EXERCISE FOR WEIGHT LOSS
This is popular and there will be no need to write much about it. Exercising helps in weight loss mainly by increasing the body's metabolism (breaking down and build-up of the body's chemical compounds). Achieving this is most times accompanied by dieting.
EXERCISE FOR WEIGHT GAIN
Contrary to popular knowledge, exercise can also help in gaining weight, however, this is not fat weight. Exercising helps to build strong bones and muscles, and when accompanied by the right type of diet, you can gain a healthy weight.
A REMEDY TO DISEASES
When you don't perform much or any physical activity, you become more prone to chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity, as cholesterol builds up in your body, also making you susceptible to heart disease.
However, exercise has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity, heart health, and body composition.
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CONCLUSION
Exercis3 helps to improve health in so many ways. Even the simplest thing as taking an hour's walk can help prove your health by at least 5%. So get engaged. You must not be obese, just fat or sick before you begin exercising. Stay fit!
