Guest Blog Post by Matthew Arrell

Matthew works as a Nutrition and Conditioning Coach and is also a Personal Trainer.

The government has spent big bucks trying to get people to exercise regularly. Yes, this has a much to do with them wanting people to lead healthier lifestyles, which will in turn reduce the NHS workload, but there are loads of other reasons for getting out there and keeping active. Most obvious are the physical benefits as well as psychological and social ones.

Physical Benefits

• Promotes healthy blood sugar levels to prevent or control diabetes
• Increases bone density to protect against osteoporosis
• Reduces the overall risk of cancer
• Increases levels of HDL or “good” cholesterol -reducing the risk of developing heart disease
• Lowers high blood pressure – lowering the risk of developing heart disease
• Boosts the immune system
• In combination with a balanced diet, helps to maintain a healthy weight
• Children can benefit by developing strong muscles and bones and a healthy heart
• Children will develop self confidence and meet lots of new friends
• Pregnant women can benefit by reduced lower back pain, thus relieving tiredness and increasing the stamina needed for labour
• Finally, you will get a better night’s sleep!

Psychological Benefits

• Boosts self-confidence
• Powerful anti-depressant
• Reduces stress, as well as an improving the ability to cope with stress
• Improves mood and self-esteem
• Pride in physical accomplishments
• Increases satisfaction with oneself
• Enhances body image
• Boosted feelings of energy
• Improves confidence in your physical abilities

Social Benefits

• Increases interaction with different people and new social circle
• Time out for yourself
• Most gyms, teams and clubs run social events as well as regular training

These are only some of the many benefits of exercise. You need only choose a few, and it makes the trip to the gym worthwhile. Look at everything you’re getting out of it!

Best of all exercise can be free. You don’t have to join an expensive gym and dress up in those tight lycra suits you see some people training in. All you need are your trainers and the motivation to get out there and get moving!

Here are Some Exercise Tips and Rules

• Play a sport. Pick anything you like, even though you may have only watched it on TV, and get along to your local team. Once you start to get competitive, you won’t want to miss a session.
• Find a buddy. Get a training partner who can get you out on those nights when you’re not feeling so good and you can return the favour when they try to skip a session.
• Exercise for charity. Charity fundraising events are everywhere. They range from walks to full marathons to mountain climbs to absolutely everything. You’ll be amazed how many people you meet while you raise money for a good cause.
• Join a fitness class. Find one that you enjoy and turn up a little early for a chat with the other people there. You’ll soon be looking forward to your new class while getting fitter all the time.
• Vary your activities so you don’t get bored. Go to the beach for a day and take a football for a kick-a-bout.
• Set yourself some realistic goals. Attempting to run a marathon next week (for example) could do you more harm than good. Take your time and gradually increase the intensity and length of your sessions.
• Visualisation. Try to picture yourself looking lean and healthy, or fitting back into those trousers or dress that’s become too tight round the middle!
• Fuel yourself. Just like a car needs fuel to work, so does your body. Do NOT get straight out of bed in the morning to exercise; at least have a light breakfast to give your body fuel for a workout.
• Refuel. You need to refuel immediately to get your blood sugar back to normal. Try fruit juices. With their natural sugar and vitamins they make for a healthy recovery drink. You also need to take on board some calories no more than an hour after exercise.

So – that’s all you need to get up and running now. The rest is up to YOU!

Image credit: mikebaird.