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The Power of Regular Activity

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What if we told you that you have the power to add years to your life span, perform daily activities easier or prevent disease and sickness?

The truth is we all have this power and it can all be accomplished through consistent, regular physical activity!

This can be planned exercise or any activity really that requires you to expend energy.

The power of regular movement, be it planned exercise or not, has many proven positive benefits. The more consistent the physical activity is, the greater the potential benefits.

Here is a brief list of what you can expect to achieve by introducing regular physical activity and movement into your lifestyle:

  • Lower blood pressure
  • Lower blood sugar
  • Improve cholesterol
  • Reduce your risk of heart disease
  • Reduce your risk of diabetes
  • Lose weight
  • Gain strength
  • Improve bone density
  • Improve range of motion
  • Stronger joints
  • Improve joint conditions (eg. arthritis)
  • Help with depression
  • Improve sleep
  • Increase longevity
  • Perform daily activities better/easier
  • Maintain independence
  • Reduce risk of some types of cancer
  • Improve cognitive abilities

This list could go on and on.

The human body was meant to work. Today we sit more then ever in the history of our existence so building regular physical activity and exercise into your life has become a necessity. The more we move and challenge our bodies, the more fit we become, the more efficient and effective we are and of course the healthier we are. So, get moving!

Want to Live Longer?

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Recently I read an article from TIME Magazine with this exact title and it listed 5 habits that if adhered to, can add about 10 years to your lifespan. Here is a summary of what the article said in regards to the 5 habits and what research says about living your fullest, longest life.

Eat a Healthy Diet

Diet is strongly linked to longevity. The article explains that research shows the best diet is one that includes lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and healthy fats and does not include much sugar or processed food, naming the Mediterranean diet as the diet that fits this best. To keep it simple, just eat real food and control your portion sizes. Eat Smart, Eat Often and Eat Small. Have you heard that before?

Exercise Regularly

“Working out regularly is a boon for both your physical and mental health, boosting everything from cardiovascular fitness to mood and energy – so it’s no surprise that it can also extend your life” the article says.
Current activity guidelines recommend aiming for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week plus 2 weekly strength training sessions for best health and longevity benefits. It also says that even if you don’t exercise now, its not too late and that research shows that there are longevity benefits to both long term exercisers and later in life exercisers.

Maintain a Healthy Body Weight

If you follow the first two recommendations, this one will take care of itself. Being overweight is linked to many chronic conditions which all have the potential to shorten your lifespan. Eat well and exercise regularly. That is the secret sauce of weight management.

Drink in Moderation

More and more the research is coming out on alcohol consumption that is in support of limiting alcohol as much as possible. It used to say that moderate consumption was ok, healthy even. Now researchers are starting to sway in the opposite direction. Last year a meta-analysis of prior alcohol studies concluded that there is no safe amount of drinking, because the net risks outweigh any potential benefits.

No Smoking

Smoking is associated with serious health problems making it a serious threat to your life longevity. If you do smoke, experts recommend quitting as soon as possible to minimize any threats to your long-term health.

And there you have it, straight from the latest research. We do have a lot of control over increasing the odds of living a long, healthy life if we follow these 5 recommendations. None of this is new either, we have all heard this before and we have been helping people take back control of their health with these exact habits for over 33 years.

The Importance of a Good Warm Up

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Before jumping into your strength training routine, you should always begin your exercise session with a light warm up of some kind. The warm up often gets skipped, especially if time is short but it is a very important piece of your exercise routine that should be incorporated every single time.

When you warm up you are taking your body from a resting state and getting it moving. This usually means some kind a cardiovascular activity. It can be walking, running, biking, jumping jacks, skipping, anything to get your body moving. You don’t want to surprise your body at the beginning of a workout by walking into the gym and beginning with weight lifting.

Once you start moving a few things happen. Your heart rate will start to elevate from it’s current resting state. This will get more blood flowing out to your muscles which helps to deliver more oxygen and nutrients to your muscles during exercise.

Your body temperature will begin to rise. This gets your muscles warmer and better prepares them for the exercise ahead and helps to prevent injuries from loading cold, unprepared muscles.

The third and one of the most important reasons for a warm up is to give you a few minutes to get the days worries, stresses and demands out of your head and to switch your focus to the workout ahead. Clear your mind and mentally prepare for your workout. You don’t want to be distracted during your workout and mindlessly go through it. You should be focused to get the most out of it.

For a good warm up all you need is 5 minutes of continuous light movement that gets your heart rate up, gets you feeling warmer, maybe even a light sweat started and lets your body and mind know to get ready for exercise.

The Sitting Disease

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This article is kind of a continuation of the article I wrote several weeks ago about trying not to take the easy way all of the time and being more mindful of your activity level or lack thereof.

The other day, I was commissioned by my siblings to take my mom to a doctor’s appointment in St. Catharines. So that morning I not only took her to the appointment in St. Catharines, but on our return to Port Colborne, we stopped to do her blood work downtown. As I was standing in the waiting room waiting for her to have her blood drawn, I realized that from 8am when I left my house to 10:30am, if I didn’t have the mindset that I have about sitting and doing nothing, I would have spent two hours and fifteen minutes of the two hours and thirty minutes that morning sitting down, right after a seven hour sleep, and it was only 10:30am!

These thoughts, strange as it may seem, are the kind of thoughts that go through my head constantly. The only time I sat down that morning was in the car driving. Otherwise, I was standing. I was standing in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, standing in the doctor’s examination room and standing in the waiting room at the Life Labs Clinic.

Typically, most people who are not mindful of their activity level would be seated most of the morning of a day like that.

If I attend a long conference or meeting, I typically don’t sit down until the event actually starts, but rather I stand behind my chair until I have to sit down. If I find myself on a bus and someone is looking for a seat and there isn’t one, I would be the first to offer mine. I would much rather stand than sit where most people would rather sit than stand. It’s all in your mindset. Just because there are chairs in a room or on a bus, doesn’t necessarily mean you have to sit. There were plenty of empty chairs for me to sit down in that morning, but I chose to stand.

Research has shown that lack of activity……”the sitting disease” they refer to it now, is just as detrimental to your health as smoking! Yes, it’s true! So don’t sit, don’t smoke either, and certainly don’t sit and smoke!

Something to think about.

Gino