Benefits Of Being Fit

The benefits of being fit are many. One of the most important benefits will be a healthy heart. Vigorous exercise strengthens the heart, making it a larger, more efficient muscle. Even light activity can assist in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels, aid the cardiovascular system, and lower blood pressure and blood fats. All these things transform into decreased risk for heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.

Other benefits of being fit will include: 

•      Stronger muscles 
•   Better flexibility 
•   Stronger bones and better bone density, which can assist in the prevention of the well known condition called osteoporosis
•  Relief of tension and anxiety
•  Better quality rest, thus better regeneration of energy.

Many people shy away from any physical activity. And the more our weight is spiraling out of control, the more we try to avoid any activity. This is often caused by a psychological stumbling block that is actually easy to overcome. We tend to think that we need to immediately jump in with heavy workouts. This is not necessary. Results can be gained from low-intensity activity such as gardening or taking a walk.

As long as you burn more calories than you consume, you will burn fat. For every extra 3,500 calories you expend, you will drop one pound. Do strenuous exercise, and you will burn those calories quickly.

But you are able to burn the same number of calories with gentler activity - you just have to do it longer and/or more often. If you are not familiar with the number of calories burned off during physical exercise, just go to Google, and enter the activity of your choice. For example, if you weigh one hundred fifty pounds and go on a brisk, 1-mile walk for 20 minutes, you will expend about 100 calories, considerably short of the 3,500 calories needed to drop a pound.

If you expend an additional three hundred calories daily done through physical activity and cut your dietary consumption another two hundred calories, then by the end of a week, you will have a calorie deficit of 3,500, comparable to a one-pound weight loss. This is exactly the sort of gradual success that experts recommend for long-term weight management. Physical activity also has additional body-slimming effects. It builds muscle and displaces fat. It is important to realize that muscle mass is greater than fat mass. Thus you might not immediately see a dramatic change on your scale, but your clothes will be looser, and your body shape will become slimmer. Compare your length with body weight in order to determine whether you need to lose or gain weight.

Adding to the benefits of being fit is when you combine physical activity with your dieting efforts. Because physical activity builds muscle, it will help counter a problem caused by dieting alone.

Weight loss by reducing your calorie intake without any good workout routine can have just the opposite effect: It can cause your body to break down muscle, which ultimately lowers your metabolic rate and makes losing weight even harder.

When you reduce calories, your body often goes into defense mode, as it doesn't know when the next meal is coming. Thus, your metabolism may slow down and burn calories more slowly. This makes further weight loss more difficult. But some research suggests regular activity helps correct this slowdown by increasing your metabolism and makes it easier to keep shedding pounds.

Exercise promotes fat loss and builds muscle. Studies show that strength training increases your body's metabolic rate - the rate at which you burn calories - even after you've finished exercising.

A good approach is to increase activity, following good workout routines which builds muscle at the same time that you're cutting back on excess calories from food. Physical activity can also reduce stress and regulate your appetite, making it easier to curb the urge to overeat. Another method to prevent falling into the trap of overeating is having more regular, but smaller meals per day.

The amount of energy needed for any activity, depends on three factors: your muscle mass, your body weight, and the activity itself. The larger the muscle mass and heavier the body part being moved, the more calories you use. The duration, frequency, and intensity of exercise also count. More muscle doesn’t  have to mean you must have big muscles, but the more muscle weight vs fat weight, the better your metabolism rate will be.

The benefits of being fit, simply means that you will be able to enjoy a long healthy lifestyle, and remain strong for many years to come.