Some will naturally find that they love to exercise, but for others it may not be your favorite thing to do. Hopefully, through time, even if you do not like to exercise you will see the benefits both mentally and physically and begin to crave that release you get when you get up and move, and notice a difference when you haven't done it. Perhaps the reason you don't like it, is because you haven't found what really fits you and your lifestyle or personality. There are SO MANY forms of exercise. There are SO MANY effective work-out regimes out there. Turn on the TV at any given time and flip through the channels and watch the countless infomercials that show dramatic pictures of before and after shots of women and men who have tried a program and dropped the weight. The first thing you must realize is that THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY TO LOSE WEIGHT AND TO GET IN SHAPE. The SECOND thing to realize is that there is NO QUICK FIX. The THIRD thing to realize is that any of these people that get the great results.... ARE EATING WELL TOO. Exercise alone will not give you the results you are looking for.
Why Should We Exercise??? When you exercise you build a stronger body, increase your metabolism, and burn calories.
1. BURN CALORIES- The foods we eat have calories that help fuel our bodies throughout the day. Different types of food we eat assist our bodies in different ways, and they all have a caloric count. When we get up and start moving thru exercise our goal is to burn MORE calories than our bodies CONSUME each day. We try to do that so our bodies have to find STORED calories/energy, through our "excess" in our bodies. When our bodies start looking for that "stored excess" and using it for energy it begins to disappear from the body as a result, you lose weight or that "stored excess". This is when the weight loss begins.
2. BUILDING STRONGER BODY (HEART/LUNGS/MIND STRENGTH)- What is the main function of our heart?? To pump blood throughout our bodies. That blood carries the various nutrients we consume through food, air, and water to the cells in our bodies. What is the main function of our lungs?? To breath in the air(OXYGEN) around us that we use to live. When we increase our movement more than what our bodies regularly do through the day(through exercise), our heart-rate increases. If our heart rate is increasing what can we safely assume?? We can assume the blood is pumping through our bodies at a quicker pace as well. When our heart starts pumping faster, our breathing increases as well. Our lungs are requiring MORE OXYGEN. That increased blood flow travels through our entire bodies including our head. This blood flow to our brain helps in our thought process and clarity. Without getting too scientific and losing readers altogether it is important to know that the more effective the blood flow is in our bodies the healthier we are.
3. INCREASED METABOLISM- Our metabolism breaks down what we consume and in-turn feeds it to our bodies in the form of energy. There are some who genetically have HIGH metabolisms, some with naturally LOWER metabolisms, and most who have NORMAL metabolisms. However, it is important to realize that there are some that would have normal metabolisms but have been unkind to their bodies and created a LOWER metabolism through their lack of movement and foods they eat. For those with normal or lower metabolisms HAVE NO FEAR...BECAUSE YOU CAN SPEED UP YOUR METABOLIC RATE. Do not use the excuse... BUT I HAVE A LOW METABOLISM. All is not lost. Through exercise your metabolism will naturally increase because your body will be begging you to feed it quicker to help it function through the day. When you do so... you have increased your metabolism.
*When you exercise, you are a great example to members of your family. Children want to be like their parents and cool aunts and uncles. Create a healthy lifestyle of good eating and exercise so they will want to follow suit.
