WHAT IS AEROBICS GOOD FOR?

Aerobic exercise is good for any age, any weight and any athletic ability and a minimum of 30  minutes of aerobic activity each day can help you live a longer and healthier life. When you ask yourself; what is aerobics good for the answer is clear. Aerobics is good for a healthy and longer life.

Aerobic exercise increases the oxygen levels in the blood and makes the heart beat faster.

This increases the flow of blood to the muscles and the organs as well as making the capillaries widen to deliver more oxygen to the body and carry away carbon dioxide and lactic acid.

As an added bonus to the question of what is aerobics good for, aerobic exercise releases endorphins which gives a person an increased sense of well being and is a natural pain killer.

When beginning a daily aerobic exercise regime you may want to first get your physician’s approvals; particularly if you have an existing health condition including morbid obesity.

When you are ready to start your aerobic exercise start slowly with a warm up including stretching and walking to slowly increase the heart rate and warm the body. As you go you can increase the pace to an aerobic level and reap the benefits of regular exercise.

Aerobic exercises include walking, jogging, cross country skiing, aerobic dancing, swimming, step aerobics, stair climbing, biking, elliptical training as well as many other forms.

The only catch is the exercise must raise your heart rate to work at 70 to 80 percent and must last a minimum of 12 minutes. As you become more aerobically fit you will need to increase the intensity of the exercise to provide a challenge to your body.

You may still be asking yourself what is aerobics good for and if you are let me outline it a bit more for you. Aerobic exercise can assist you in:

• Maintaining a healthy weight. Aerobic exercise along with a healthy diet can help you to lose weight and keep it off.

• Raise metabolism and stamina.  Aerobics may exhaust you at first; however, in the long run you will increase your stamina and your metabolism.

• Increase immunity.  With aerobic exercise the immune system is activated and strengthened helping you to fight off viral illnesses such as the flu or a cold.

• Health risk reduction.  Daily aerobic exercise helps to reduce conditions such as obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke and even some types of cancer.

• Health management.  Some types of chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and blood sugar can better be managed with daily aerobic exercise.

• Be heart healthy.  Aerobic exercise can make the heart stronger and pump blood more efficiently.  Additionally your HDL cholesterol is boosted while the LDL cholesterol is lowered.  This means less buildup in your arteries and a longer and healthier life.

• Be happy!  Regular aerobic exercise releases endorphins which gives you a better outlook on life, eases depression and reduces tension.

• Independence.  Staying active will keep your body and muscles strong and help you maintain your independence and mobility as you age.  In addition regular aerobic exercise can help to keep your mind sharp.

• Longer life.  People who are active in regular aerobic exercise have been found to live longer and fuller lives over the more sedentary individuals.

So when you ask yourself what is aerobics good for you can turn around and ask yourself what isn’t aerobics good for? Follow that question up with what am I waiting for?