Why Should You Exercise?

Exercise is a key component of health. In order to be healthy, we have to exercise regularly. Sure, it can be difficult to take the time out of your busy schedule to engage in physical activity but exercise helps your mind, emotions and your body in so many ways. Yes, exercise can help you to lose weight and tone muscle. It will make you look better, but it also releases endorphins and other feel-good chemicals that stabilize and even improve mood.

Exercise isn’t just a prescription for weight loss. It’s a prescription for longevity. Strength and weight-bearing exercises such as jumping, running or walking can help stave off osteoporosis (weakening of the bones) for both men and women. A person might be able to avoid deadly diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure if he/she engages in regular physical activity. Of course, for those who have these diseases, it’s easier to manage or control them going forward if exercise is a regular part of your life.

It’s also important to note that exercise, when done routinely, can boost HDL (high-density lipoprotein) – the good cholesterol – while decreasing LDL (low-density lipoprotein) – bad cholesterol. As a result, the blood flows more smoothly through the body, reducing the buildup of plaque in the arteries. (Arterial plaque leads to a host of heart problems including arteriosclerosis, stroke and myocardial infarction, aka heart attack.)

Studies show that most people know that they should exercise, but still maintain that they can’t make the time for it. It’s true that life is hectic with work, child care/family responsibilities and a bunch of other demands on our time. The trick is to make exercise a priority. You just have to commit to doing it. Although experts suggest we exercise 5-7 times a week for at least one hour, long-term benefits can be seen with regular activity of 20 minutes, 3-4 times a week.

If you’re new to exercising, the best thing to do is to start slow and build up at a reasonable rate. Overdoing it can lead to injuries and stress. Find activities you enjoy such as golfing, swimming or walking and start with those. Many people think exercised is boring, but it doesn’t have to be. Mix up your activities and again, do the things you enjoy.

Others need outside support to make exercise work. So, if you need to engage a buddy, your significant other or even a fitness trainer, then go ahead and do it. Some people report success with marking time out in their calendars for exercise each and every week. They make an appointment with themselves and find that they’re much happier – and healthier – for it.

Of course, you don’t have to do the whole hour of activity at the same time. Exercise has a cumulative effect. You can get the same benefits from working out in three, 20-minute intervals a day or building up your hour in five-minute chunks.

Another benefit of exercise is that it will boost your confidence – and potentially – your sex life. Regular exercise, as we mentioned earlier, makes you look better. It also makes you feel better…and it gives you more energy. Men who exercise regularly report fewer problems with erectile dysfunction as they age. Most individuals claim improved sleep function. They have less trouble falling and staying asleep.

With so many benefits to regular exercising, the question should be – how can you not find the time for it?

Pregnancy water workout

Pregnancy does not mean you get to slouch. Get up and get active. Exercise while pregnant is good for baby and you. Health during pregnancy includes some form of exercise. Below you will learn about an interesting pregnancy water workout you can do in any pool. Pregnant women and exercise make a good match. Try to purchase some water-exercise gear such as fitness paddles, inflatable flotation belt, and webbed gloves. Dana Sullivan has created some water-exercises for pregnant women. Read on and try the following exercises below The Buggy Push, Lifting the Baby, Step Climb, and Charlie Chaplin Walk.


As your belly expands, keeping up with your regular exercise routine becomes more of a challenge since the added weight puts extra stress on the muscles and joints. Consider alternating or switching your routine to a water workout. "Whenever I teach water exercise to pregnant women, they say they can't believe how light and graceful they feel in the water," says Mary E. Sanders, M.S., an exercise physiologist and water-exercise researcher at the University of Nevada, Reno.

An added plus: You don't need to know how to swim to reap the benefits of water exercise (you don't have to get your hair wet, either). "Just moving in water is like lifting liquid weight," says Sanders. The more effort you use, by bumping up the intensity of a particular move, or using resistance tools such as dumbbell-shaped paddles or webbed gloves, the higher the resistance.

Water-exercise also forces you to strengthen your trunk muscles -- especially the abdominal and lower back -- almost without trying. That's because you must contract and use these muscles in order to stabilize yourself as you move. "Performing abdominal exercises on land, while you're lying on your back, doesn't prepare your muscles for the way you use them in real life," notes Sanders. In the water, you work them in an upright position by simply walking through the water.

The following workout, designed by Sanders, is so gentle that even a beginner can do it (although if you didn't exercise before your pregnancy, be sure to ask for your physician's approval). Get into the water and warm up for five minutes, swimming laps or just walking back and forth across the pool. Then, alternate these four strength-training moves with aerobic intervals. For instance, walk or jog as quickly as you can for 15 seconds, then go at a slow recovery speed for 15 seconds (as you get stronger, increase the duration of the high-intensity intervals). Alternate back and forth for 3 minutes. Then do move #1. Do another three-minute aerobic interval and do move #2, and so on. The workout should take about 30 minutes.

The Buggy Push (targets the trunk, upper back and shoulders). Hold a kick board so it's up on one edge and immersed halfway into the water. Now walk while pushing the kick board in front of you. Concentrate on keeping the board straight. Turn around and walk back to the starting position, but this time zig-zag the board in front of you.

Lifting the Baby (targets the arms). Stand with your elbows bent, palms facing up, floating on top of the water, (to make this even more challenging, wear webbed gloves or use water paddles, see below for details). Bend your knees and lower your body into a squat position. At the same time, pushing your hands (or the paddles) down through the water until they're in front of your thighs. Rise up to the start position, curling your arms up toward your shoulders. Repeat 12-15 times.

Step Climb (targets the buttocks and legs). Stand in the shallow end of the pool facing the stairs. Step up onto the lowest step and then back down. Repeat 10 times, slowly, leading with the right leg, and then 10 times leading with the left. Now turn sideways, so the stairs are on your right, and step up, leading with the right leg; repeat with the left. Finally, turn away from the step and step up backward, again, 10 times leading with the right leg and 10 times with the left.

Tip: Keep your hands above the water to make the exercise more challenging.

Charlie Chaplin Walk (targets the middle and upper back). Tuck your elbows into your sides, hold your hands out to the sides with your thumbs pointing up. Walk the width of the pool twice forward and twice backward.