People who are physically fit look good and feel good. A good exercise
program will lengthen your life, improve your appearance, build self confidence and help delay the
aging process.
Remember that you need to do something physical activity every day. If
you don't use your joints, they'll tighten up with age to create the bent and worn out appearance
associated with old age. People with arthritis experience less pain if they continue to keep their
joints flexible.
The exercises may be categorized based on the energy pathways that are
utilized during exercise. Some exercises need oxygen while others do not need oxygen. Following
two categories of exercises may be considered.
Aerobic Exercise
Aerobic means "with oxygen", so aerobic exercise is done in such a manner that the body
requires large amounts of oxygen to generate energy. This involves moving the body slowly and
smoothly. The muscles utilize oxygen to burn fat and glucose to produce energy. The exercise is
performed at moderate levels of intensity for extended period of time.
Aerobic exercises include walking, jogging, running, dancing, swimming, skiing, rowing, etc.
You can do aerobic exercises at home on an exercise bike, treadmill, etc.
The benefits of doing regular aerobic exercise
- Improving lungs by strengthening the muscles involved in respiration.
- Strengthening the heart, improving its pumping efficiency and reduce the resting heart rate,
reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease.
- Improving the blood circulation and reduce
blood pressure.
- Increasing the number of red blood cells.
Anaerobic Exercise
Anaerobic means "no oxygen". The anaerobic exercise is performed at high levels of intensity
for short period of time. During the anaerobic exercise, the muscles don’t require large amounts
of oxygen, but metabolizes muscle glycogen to produce power.
Anaerobic exercises involve resistance training or strength training and weight lifting.
One of the important advantages of anaerobic exercises is that these don't hurt the body joints as these are usually non-impact exercises.
Safe Exercise For You
The safest form of exercise is regular walking.
Other form of physical activities good for your heart that uses the large muscle groups are:
running, jogging, swimming, bicycle riding, rowing, dancing, taking stairs, etc. While exercising,
keep an eye on your Target Heart Rate.
-
Spend 30 minutes each day in brisk walking.
- Park your car 10 minutes from work and
walk. Make little changes in your habits.
- Get off the bus or train 1 or 2 stops early and
walk that last part.
- Take the stairs instead of lift or escalators.
- Don't look for
excuses for not doing any physical activity.
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