Athletes gain strength and fitness when they exercise, but there are other benefits of exercise that affect all areas of your life.
The National Institute on Aging explained that being active may prevent diseases such as heart disease, stroke, arthritis, and certain types of cancer.
It also helps maintain your weight and blood pressure, moreover, exercise helps improve your balance, which reduces the risk of falls, according to the “healthdigest” website.
You may not know that exercise provides any emotional benefits, but it does. Physical activity has the potential to reduce the risk of depression in children and adults. Exercise also helps reduce long- and short-term anxiety in adults as well as improve the quality of their sleep. but that is not all. Physical activity can give your brain a huge boost and this may be the secret to staying resilient as you age.
Physical activity offers both long- and short-term advantages when it comes to cognitive health.
A study published in “JMIR Publications” showed that physical activity improves brain performance.
The study followed 90 participants, ages 50 to 74, who took reasoning tests on the days they exercised and the days they weren’t active. The results showed that test results were better on workout days.
Other benefits of exercise include reduced risk of dementia in adults over 50, and exercise improves attention, memory, processing speed, and the ability to retrieve and use information gained over time.
If you’re wondering how exercise helps the brain, it begins by increasing the blood flow that feeds the brain. In simple terms, circulation gives your brain the nutrients it needs to function.
To help your brain reap the benefits of physical activity, the US Department of Health recommends that adults get 150 to 300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous activity per week.