Miriam Nelson, author of "Strong Women Stay Young," begins her book on exercise telling her readers that "Yes, you can turn back the clock!" Nelson echoes other doctors and researchers who agree that with daily exercise, you can live longer and better. An overwhelming number of studies show that daily exercise keeps your body functioning at an optimal level and reduces your risk of developing serious diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
Cardiovascular Exercise
Cardiovascular exercise, or exercise that raises your heart rate, is the "centerpiece" of physical workouts, according to Harvard Medical School. Also called aerobic exercise, cardiovascular exercise includes brisk walking, running, biking or any other activity, including weight lifting, that requires your heart to beat faster and your lungs to work hard.
When the heart and lungs are forced to work harder, muscle tissue becomes stronger and more efficient while you are at rest. According to Don and Kyle Colbert, authors of "Get Fit and Live," aerobic exercise causes the lungs to triple the rate at which they remove cellular waste from your body.
Strength Training
Strength training, or weight lifting, is key in keeping your body in shape. A Ball State University study, cited by "Men's Health Total Fitness Guide 2009," found that men who lifted weight lost more fat than those who had not lifted because their body continued to release fat-burning hormones while at rest. The authors also note other benefits of increasing your muscle mass through strength training: increased muscle mass strengthens the immune system; muscle mass burns more calories at rest than fat does; and muscle mass keeps bones strong and dense.
Flexibility Exercises
According to Bill Hartman, a physical therapist writing in "Men's Health Total Fitness Guide," poor flexibility decreases your ability to build muscle and makes you susceptible to injuries from everyday activities such as lifting or twisting. Poor flexibility prevents muscles from functioning at their entire range of motion and leads to poor posture and excess stress on ligaments and joints. Hartman recommends stretching exercises especially for your back, hips, calves and feet.
Balance and Exercise
Aerobic, strength training and stretching exercises all improve balance. Miriam Nelson's 1994 Tufts University study on exercise and aging found that women who did not exercise showed an 8.5 percent decline in balance over the study period. Those who did exercise, on the other hand, increased their balance by 14 percent. Moreover, exercises to improve balance resulted in a 53 percent reduction in the number of falls in women older than 80 in a 1997 New Zealand study cited by Nelson.
References
- "Strong Women Stay Young"; Mariam Nelson; 2000
- Harvard Health Publications: The Secret to Better Health --- Exercise
- "Get Fit and Live"; Don Colbert and Kyle Colbert; 2010
- "Men's Health Total Fitness Guide 2009"; Kimberly Neumann and Scott Quill; 2009
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