What you gain by exercising on your overall well-being include a variety of advantages—increased relaxation and ability to handle stress, better sleep, a more positive mood, and boosted immune function. What’s more, it decreases your chances of developing serious health conditions, such as osteoporosis and cancer, and can lengthen your life span.

      Studies show that overweight women are more likely to develop serious health risks such as heart disease, cancers, and stroke. By using up oxygen and causing the body to burn stored fat, exercise can help you maintain a normal weight. If you go for a four-mile walk four times a way, you’ll burn about 1,600 calories—about half a pound a week. After a year, this amounts to a loss of twelve pounds—twenty-four pounds after a year! Studies estimate that for each pound of muscle you add to your body, you will burn an additional thirty-five to fifty calories per day; an extra five pounds of muscle will burn about 175-250 calories a day, or an extra pound of fat every two to three weeks.

     Another healthy benefit of regular exercise is stronger bones. Regular, moderate exercise, in particular weight-bearing exercises, increases bone mass, making bones stronger and making you less likely to develop osteoporosis and arthritis and suffer debilitating accidents such as falling as you age.

     Finally, exercise can also help women deal with stress better and improve their mood. Studies show that regular exercise reduces the release of stress hormones and it produces chemical changes which affect your mood, reducing symptoms of depression and other psychological disorders. Research suggests that lower stress levels and a happier mood boosts immune function and lengthens the life span significantly.

     It’s important for women to understand the benefits of exercise on their overall physical and mental well-being, and it’s easy to get started on implementing a regular exercise routine!

Tina Turbin