We’ve heard it many times before, yet it couldn’t be truer. In order to achieve good health, we must exercise. It is equally as important as the food we eat. However, what exactly is exercise, and why is it important?
The importance of exercise is discussed and thought of frequently. Studies that measure people’s physical activity revealed that these self-reports are likely over-estimated. Despite us knowing that exercise is good for us, many of us simply do not do it. We are told to do it without really understanding how and why it is good for us.
What is exercise?
Exercise can be defined as an activity for training and developing the body. These activities can include walking, hiking, dancing, etc. These activities get us moving and increase our heart rates.
According to the Oxford Canadian Dictionary (Paperback, Second Edition), the word “exercise” has over seven definitions. The term is generally used to refer to an activity that requires physical effort or practice to develop a skill.
Physical activity is any type of movement involving the body. Exercise is a type of physical activity that requires physical (and often mental) exertion for the purpose of training the body and mind and maintaining health. While exercise can refer to both physical and mental training, more emphasis is placed on the physical activity aspect because it is critical to our overall health and wellbeing.
What is the difference between exercise and physical activity?
“Physical activity” is not the same as “exercise,” though both are vital in maintaining optimal health.
Exercise is a category of physical activity that is done for the purpose of improving or maintaining physical fitness. It is generally planned, structured, and repetitive, and involves moderate to vigorous exertion.
Physical activity is any movement produced by the skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure, or uses more energy than resting (including sitting). Physical, non-exercise activity includes gardening, yard work, and housework.
How does exercise work?
During exercise, each system of the body is involved, from the heart, blood vessels, lungs, and liver to the skin, brain, and nervous system. The exact muscles that are affected depend on the type of exercise.
Regardless, the process of exercise is similar between both aerobic and anaerobic activities. In both cases, they involve increased breathing and heart rate.
Muscles need glucose and adenosine triphosphate (ATP), an energy-bearing molecule, for contraction and movement. Oxygen is needed to create more ATP, so that is why our breathing quickens. Our heart is forced to work harder and faster to get more oxygenated blood to the muscles.
The body needs to keep making ATP for continuous exercise, and to help eliminate waste and heat through sweating. Blood flow is diverted from nonessential organs such as the stomach and intestines, to the working muscles. This limits the organs’ functions.
A number of chemical messengers known as neurotransmitters are triggered in the brain, including endorphins, dopamine, glutamate, and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). These transmitters also perform a variety of functions such as relaxation and helping the body move in a smooth and controlled manner.
The hypothalamus in the brain is activated as the body gets hot to send nerve impulses to stimulate the sweat glands in the skin. The kidney is also affected by exercise as the rate in which it filters blood is increased. They also help in better water reabsorption.
In addition, the face is also affected as the capillaries (small blood vessels) near the surface dilate to release heat. During all of this, the strain of the exercise causes microscopic damage or tears to the muscle. These heal over and, over time, result in stronger muscles.
All of these functions may sound as if the body is under a great deal of stress, and the pain and exhaustion we feel after exercise may seem to prove that it is bad for us. Yet, all of these actions have a healthy consequence on our overall body function and health.
Moderate exercise daily can make our heart bigger and stronger, as well as make our blood vessels more elastic. This allows our heart to perform more efficiently and with less strain. It also lowers our blood pressure. Not only is the heart muscle stronger, but our other muscles become stronger as well.
Calories and fat are burned during exercise, and increased muscle mass helps speed up our metabolism. Our lungs expand and become stronger. We are able to gain more oxygen to the organs. This increased oxygen flow to the brain improves brain function, improves learning and memory capabilities, and assists in cell growth.
Exercise also helps regulate mood, which can help against anxiety, depression, and emotional eating. Despite the fatigue we experience after an exercise, regular physical activity increases stamina and improves energy.
A study by scientists at Lund University in Sweden revealed that exercise can also change our genetics. “Prof. Charlotte Ling and colleagues found that exercise brought about changes in 7,000 of the participants’ genes, i.e. 35% of their whole genetic makeup” (1). These types of changes play a role in preventing obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Why do we need exercise and physical activity?
Exercising is vital to the body.
The entire human body is surrounded by muscles. Even your heart is a muscle. To keep these muscles performing properly, they must be worked. Through exercise, we strengthen these muscles and let them perform to their best abilities. Muscles are what keeps the bones in place and allows us to move; muscles are also what keeps the blood pumping smoothly through our bodies. Posture, digestion, and even our moods are improved by exercise.
The movement of lymph (what the fluid is called in the lymphatic system) is done through the constriction of the skeletal muscles. This makes exercise important to the lymphatic system as the movement of the muscles when exercising causes a better flow of the lymphatic fluid throughout the body. Without this movement of the muscles the lymphatic system moves at a slow rate thus preventing the body from removing any unwanted waste from the body.
The lymphatic system is a one way circulatory system that transports interstitial fluid (the fluid that surrounds cells), white blood cells, and absorbs and transports fatty acids. It removes toxins and other unwanted waste from the cell. The spleen and thymus play a part in the lymphatic system’s ability to cleanse the body of any unwanted waste and toxins.
The lymphatic system is part of the body’s immune system. The lymph fluid will pick up any foreign invaders and carry them to lymph nodes and lymphatic organs. There, the fluid is filtered, and white blood cells, including lymphocytes and macrophages, will defend against and destroy the harmful organisms.
What are the main types of exercise?
There are three main classifications of exercise: aerobic, anaerobic, and flexibility.
Aerobic exercise
Aerobic exercises are physical activities that involve the body’s consumption of oxygen. The meaning of “aerobic” means “with oxygen.” These types of exercises require the body to move in repetitive motions over an extended period of time, usually using light to moderate intensity. It is also known as cardiovascular exercise due to its various heart health benefits, and includes activities such as cycling, walking, running, hiking, and swimming.
Anaerobic exercise
Anaerobic exercises involve a higher intensity and shorter duration. These types of activities involve weight training, sprinting, jumping rope, and any of rapid bursts of intense exercise. While aerobic means “with oxygen,” anaerobic means “with no oxygen.” This means that your body’s demand for oxygen during the activity exceeds the oxygen supply available.
Flexibility exercise
Flexibility exercises focus on stretching and increasing the elasticity of the muscles. These types of exercises include yoga, pilates, and tai chi. It is easy to think that flexibility exercises are less work, and thus less important. Nevertheless, these types of exercises are important in relaxation, improving circulation, and reducing stiffness and chance of injury, and can also improve core strength.
How much exercise and physical activity should I get?
To get the full benefit, it is recommended to exercise a minimum of 30 minutes each day. Children and young adults under the age of 18 are recommended to get a minimum of 1 hour each day. The activity should require enough energy to increase the heart rate so that the heart muscles are being properly exercised.
The physical activity should involve a moderate intensity aerobic exercise, such as a brisk walk or moderate cycling. Your breathing and heart rate must increase. The more out of shape you are, the more out-of-breath you will be, even during a low to moderate intensity exercise. This is natural. You must persevere. In time, your muscles will strengthen and the efficiency of your heart, and other organs, will improve.
If you are not somewhat out of breath, then you are not exercising enough. Once you have gained some stamina and are used to exercising on a daily basis, then you can incorporate anaerobic exercise. These short bursts of intense exercise help develop stronger muscles, as well as improve cardio-respiratory fitness, and waste build-up and removal in the body.
Anaerobic exercises are meant to be short, and can even be added during a regular aerobic exercise. For example, if you are going for a walk, you can intersperse it with a quick sprint before returning to your usual pace.
For either type of exercise, it is also important to add flexibility activities. These activities are essential in helping to prevent injury and prepare the muscles. A few minutes of stretching can be added before and after a regular exercise. Of course, activities such as yoga and tai chi are also extremely beneficial and can also be added to the daily exercise routine.
You can also incorporate more activity into regular tasks by biking or walking to work instead of driving (when possible); using the stairs instead of taking the elevator; walking around while talking on the phone; having walk-and-talk meetings; parking your car away from the front door; and walking to the person you want to talk to instead of texting, calling or emailing whenever possible (such as coworkers’ offices, a neighbour, or anyone in relatively close proximity).
Takeaway
With numerous health benefits, exercise is not something that can be neglected when aiming for optimal health. Not only is it important to have a set time to exercise, it is also important to live an active lifestyle by having continuous movement and activity throughout the day.
Living a sedentary lifestyle – a day spent sitting at a computer or in front of a television – has been linked with obesity, heart disease, and a number of chronic diseases.
Exercising a mere 30 minutes each and every day can significantly improve your health, but you can do better by spending less time sitting and more time doing activities such as gardening, playing badminton, or outdoor photography to keep moving. Life is constantly moving and changing around us, and our bodies are made to do the same. Your health depends on it.
References
- “What is Exercise? The benefits of exercise.” Medical News Today.