Going to the gym to keep fit sounds like a waste of time but for many people mostly because they are not aware of the health benefits that come with it. Keeping fit helps with your mental health and also helps keep you in a good mood. This, however, requires commitment and staying motivated
The benefits of keeping fit are experienced by everyone regardless of their weight, age, or other physical characteristics. There are so many benefits of going to the gym, as the experts from Tommie Copper state here https://www.tommiecopper.com. Going to the gym to keep fit also helps to boost confidence in your appearance as well as having fun in getting to know new fit friends.
Why Should You Keep Fit?
To Manage Your Body Weight
Going to the gym and being physically active helps to burn excess calories, therefore, helping you to lose excess weight and maintain your desired weight. The amount of weight lost is equivalent to the number of calories burnt. If you are unable to hit the gym every day, you should consider other forms of exercising and keeping fit like taking the stairs. Managing your weight also helps to boost your self-esteem.
To Prevent Lifestyle Diseases
Living a sedentary lifestyle without physical activity predisposes you to many diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cancer, heart attacks, and stroke. Keeping fit helps to lower the amount of bad cholesterol while increasing the amount of good cholesterol thus helping to prevent high blood pressure.
Being physically fit not only helps with preventing these diseases but it also helps to manage them in those living with these diseases. By avoiding these diseases, you get to save money that could have been spent going to hospital appointments and purchasing drugs and also helps to improve your general quality of health.
Helps to Make You Happier and Lift Your Mood
Exercise helps your body to release substances known as endorphins which help you to feel good and reduce any pain that you may be experiencing. Exercise also triggers the release of serotonin and norepinephrine hormones by the brain and these hormones help to reduce anxiety, stress, and depression.
You can get these benefits of exercise even with less intense exercises. Doing exercise also helps to increase blood flow to your brain thus enhancing the brain function and stimulating thinking and memory. It also triggers changes in the structure of your brain thus helping in the management of neurodevelopmental diseases like Alzheimer’s disease.
Helps to Have a Good Sex Life
Exercise helps to improve blood circulation and to tone muscles increasing their flexibility and therefore improving sexual performance. Exercise also enhances sex drive. Exercise has also shown to reduce erectile dysfunction in men thus improving their sex life. By helping to improve the appearance of your skin, exercise helps to boot your confidence and improve your sex life.
Other advantages of exercise include improving the quality of sleep, boosting body energy, improving your skin by reducing the oxidative stress, and promoting bone density. The benefits of keeping fit to outweigh any disadvantages like taking up your working time.
How Can You Maintain Your Health While Keeping Fit?
Eat Healthily
You should eat a balanced diet when you are keeping fit so that you get the nutrients to give you the energy you are going to use to exercise. You need to avoid junk and eat healthy foods that will improve your performance and enhance recovery. Your diet should include all the essential nutrients that are, carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for short and high-intensity exercise while fats are the sources of energy for long and moderate-intensity exercise. The depletion of carbohydrate stores reduces your capability to exercise. Proteins on the other hand help to boost muscle growth and improve recovery after exercise while also enhancing performance.
You should take a well-balanced diet 3 hours before you start an exercise and then take a simple meal half an hour before to prevent having discomfort in your stomach while doing exercise. You should never skip an important meal.
Drink Plenty of Water
Everyone should take an average of 7 glasses of water per day. When you are going to the gym or doing intense exercise, it is important to drink more than this amount to replenish the water that is lost during exercise. Water makes up about 65% of your body weight and therefore to know how much water you need to take, you should multiply your body weight by 65%.
Maintain Positive Mental Health
Do not let anyone try to discourage you from keeping fit because you know that it is for a good course. You should also not be intimidated by people whose weight loss is happening faster than yours. Commit to your plan and keep your eye on the goal that you aim to achieve.
Get yourself a fit friend who will ensure accountability on your side by acting as your support system. You should believe in the capability to achieve your set goals and constantly keep motivating and treating yourself with movies or vacations whenever you achieve even a small milestone. Positive mental health will help with your general well-being.
You should do a mild warm-up before hitting the gym to enhance blood and oxygen supply to your muscles while doing exercise.
Keeping fit has many benefits like improving your health, helping with weight loss, and enhancing thinking and memory. You should eat a balanced diet, drink a lot of water, and also stay motivated while going to the gym.
