Aerobic fitness is a crucial component of optimal health and longevity and is intimately connected to your quality of life. The Mayo Clinic suggests that aerobic exercise is good for you, regardless of your age, weight or athletic ability. Even 30 minutes of aerobic activity per day can help you live healthier and longer. By getting fit now, you're helping ensure that your later years are pain free and are marked by a vibrancy and vitality that keeps chronic disease at bay.
Heart Health
According to the American Heart Association, cardiovascular disease is the number one killer in America, accounting for about 36 percent of deaths. Physical inactivity and a poor state of aerobic fitness are major risk factors for coronary heart disease and stroke and are associated with cardiovascular mortality. A high level of aerobic fitness improves your cardiovascular health by controlling blood lipid abnormalities, blood sugar irregularities and blood pressure. The National Emergency Medical Association states that aerobically fit individuals also benefit from a lower resting heart rate, which means your heart works less to pump the same volume of blood.
Weight Control
ParticipACTION--the national advocate of physical activity, aerobic fitness and sports participation in Canada--states that among children and adolescents aged two to 17, 26 percent are overweight and eight percent are obese. For the first time in many generations, according to a study by the "New England Journal of Medicine," "our children's lifespan could be 2 to 5 years less than our own." ParticipACTION suggests that a potential solution to the obesity epidemic is regular physical activity, "which is associated with a 30 percent reduction in all causes of mortality rates."
Mental Health
The American Heart Association states that regular participation in physical activity "reduces feelings of depression and anxiety, improves mood and promotes a sense of well-being." It's also known that aerobic exercise can stimulate both immediate and long-term reductions in your stress levels, aid your coping mechanisms, quell anxiety or hostility you may be experiencing and contribute to an enhanced sense of your self-esteem. Although a growing body of evidence is being gathered and studied, the underlying biochemical explanations for aerobic activity's ability to enhance your mood and sense of well-being are still debated in academic circles.
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