Exercise
Keep Your Body In Optimum Condition

Exercise keeps us healthy and makes us feel great. And it can be completely free. How it benefits and the exercise we should do below.

What is Exercise?

Further Exploration – Articles & Media

What is Exercise?

Exercise is any movement we make which works our muscles and causes us to expend energy. It is essential for keeping our body and in turn our mind healthy.

It takes many forms and doesn’t need to be an all out session in the gym.

Not only does it keep us healthy, the endorphins produced while we are exercise give us both energy and make us feel great. It’s tough to feel sad after a good workout. Even just going for a walk can lighten our mood. How it benefits us and the type of exercise we should do below

"It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable."

Socrates

12 Ways Exercise Benefits Us

Exercise has so many physical and mental benefits. As well as keeping us fit, health and toned, it is also an incredible mood booster. Some of the benefits below;

The endorphins released bring us relaxation, happiness and calm
Helps us maintain our ideal weight and sculpt our body
Keeps our mind healthy and active to allow us to excel in other tasks such as learning or enjoying new experiences
Gives us energy allowing us to (amongst other things) have more fun
Brings contentment and a sense of achievement
Allows good rest and sleep
Can make for a better sex life and allow us to have better relationships
Allows us to see what our body is capable of
Can build our relationships with family, friends and others through competitive and non-competitive sports and exercise
Lowers risk of heart & lung disease
Increases longevity
It’s fun

"Training gives us an outlet for suppressed energies created by stress and thus tones the spirit just as exercise conditions the body.."

Arnold Schwarzenegger

What Exercise Should We Do?

How much should we do?

It is recommended that we get 150 minutes of exercise per week.

This can be broken down as per below..

5 x 30 minute sessions. A good way to split if you can get a 30 minute chunk of time in a day
10 x 15 minute sessions. This is a great way for those with busy lives who find it difficult to find exercise. Try 15 minutes in the morning before starting the day, it’s a great way to set us up for the day ahead. Similarly getting 15 minutes when we’ve finished work is an excellent way to unwind after a busy day..

What should we do?

Exercise can be broken down into 3 main areas, i.e. strength, cardio & core. Get a good mix of these. You can split the time / sessions mentioned above between the 3 types of exercise below. Make sure that you are fuelling your body correctly to allow you to exercise at your full capacity (click here)

We don’t need to join a gym, exercise from home is easily done. Check out some of the articles below.

Cardio (Cardiovascular) Exercise

Cardio or aerobic exercise is exercise that gets you moving and raises your heart rate. There are many exercises (see some below) that get you moving. Get out there and get the heart pumping, you’ll feel great for it.

Walking
Hiking
Cycling
Swimming
Running
Climbing
Playing Sport (Football, Tennis, Rugby, Golf etc)
Gardening
Skip / Jump Rope
Star Jumps / Jumping Jacks
Burpees
Hula-hooping
Aerobic Workouts
Dancing
Rowing
Trampoline-ing

Strength Exercise

As the name suggests strength training focuses on building strength and muscle. We don’t all need to look like Arnie however have a degree of strength is good for daily life and will make you feel content too.

Weight lifting
Push Ups
Sit Ups
Lunges
Crunches
Squats
Exercising with resistance bands

Core Exercise

Core training is a mixture of both cardio and strength. Having a strong core has a number of benefits including a strong posture, better balance and flexibility, less susceptibility to injury and ability to perform better at other exercise. Some core building exercises below.