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Regular physical exercise brings benefits such as improved sleep and increased life expectancy

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Any movement that gets your muscles working and helps your body burn calories can be considered physical exercise - jogging, walking, soccer, swimming, dancing. There are plenty of options and several researches prove the benefits of physical exercise for physical and mental health. Regular practice helps increase your energy levels, is good for your skin and may even help you live longer (1).

Check out 10 benefits of physical exercise for the body and brain that are proven by science.

1. It can make you feel happier

Physical exercise has proven to be effective in improving mood and decreasing feelings of depression, anxiety and stress (see study about it: 2). That's because exercise produces changes in the parts of the brain that regulate stress and anxiety.

They can also increase the brain's sensitivity to the hormones serotonin and norepinephrine, which alleviate feelings of depression (1). In addition, regular exercise increases the production of endorphins, which are known to help produce positive feelings and reduce pain perception (see study about: 1).

In addition, regular physical exercise has been shown to reduce symptoms in people who suffer from anxiety. The habit can also help these individuals to be more aware of their mental state so that they can distance themselves from their fears (1).

Interestingly enough, it doesn't matter how intense your workout is. It appears that your mood can benefit from exercise, regardless of the intensity of your physical activity. A study of 24 women diagnosed with depression showed that exercise of any intensity significantly reduced feelings of depression (3).

The effects of exercise on mood are so powerful that choosing whether to exercise (or not) makes a difference in short periods. One study asked 26 healthy men and women who normally exercised regularly to continue or stop exercising for two weeks. Those who stopped exercising experienced increases in the feeling of negativity (4).

2. It can help with weight loss

Some studies show that lack of physical exercise is an important factor in weight gain and obesity (5 and 6).

To understand the effect of exercise on weight reduction, it is important to understand the relationship between exercise and energy expenditure. Your body expends energy in three ways: digesting food, exercising, and maintaining bodily functions such as heart rate and breathing.

If you are on a calorie-restricted diet, less food intake will lower your metabolic rate, which tends to delay overall weight loss. Regular exercise, on the other hand, increases your metabolic rate, helping your body burn more calories and lose weight faster (5, 6, 7, and 8).

Furthermore, studies demonstrate that combining aerobic exercise with resistance training can maximize fat loss and maintenance of muscle mass, essential for maintaining a stable weight (6, 8, 9, 10 and 11).

3. Good for muscles and bones

Regular exercise plays a vital role in building and maintaining strong muscles and bones.

Physical activities like weight lifting can stimulate muscle building when combined with adequate protein intake. This is because exercise helps release hormones that promote your muscles' ability to absorb amino acids. This helps them to grow and reduces the chances of injury (12 and 13).

As people age, they tend to lose muscle mass and function, which can lead to injury and disability. Regular physical activity is essential to reduce muscle loss and maintain strength with age (14).

In addition, exercise helps to increase bone density when you are younger, as well as helping to prevent osteoporosis later in life (15). Interestingly, high-impact exercise such as gymnastics or running, or sports such as football and basketball, which exert pressure throughout the body, have been shown to promote greater bone density than non-impact sports such as swimming and cycling (16).

4. It can increase your energy levels

Exercise can be a real energy booster for healthy people as well as those suffering from various medical conditions (17 and 18). One study found that six weeks of regular exercise reduced the feeling of fatigue in 36 healthy people who reported persistent fatigue (19).

In addition, exercise can significantly increase energy levels for people suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and other serious illnesses (20 and 21). In fact, exercise seems to be more effective in combating CFS than other treatments, including passive therapies such as relaxation and stretching or no treatment at all (20).

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It has also been shown that regular physical exercise increases energy levels in people suffering from progressive diseases such as cancer, AIDS and multiple sclerosis (21).

5. Reduces the risk of developing chronic diseases

Lack of regular physical activity is the main cause of chronic diseases (22) such as diabetes and hypertension. Regular physical exercise, on the other hand, improves insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular fitness and body composition, helping to regulate blood pressure and blood fat levels (23, 24, 25 and 26).

On the other hand, lack of regular exercise – even in the short term – can lead to significant increases in abdominal fat, which increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and early death (23). Therefore, studies recommend the daily practice of physical exercise as a way to prevent these problems (see research on this: 27 and 28).

6. Improves skin health

Oxidative stress is a phenomenon that occurs when the body's antioxidant defenses cannot fully repair the damage caused by free radicals in cells. This can damage our internal structures and is directly reflected in the skin's appearance.

Although intense, strenuous physical activity can contribute to oxidative damage, regular and moderate exercise has been shown to increase your body's production of natural antioxidants—these substances help protect cells from premature aging (29 and 30).

Likewise, physical exercise improves blood flow and can induce skin cell adaptations, helping to delay the appearance of wrinkles and blemishes (31).

7. It can help brain health and memory

Physical exercise can improve brain function and protect memory and thinking skills. For starters, regular practice increases your heart rate, which promotes blood and oxygen flow to your brain.

Regular exercise also stimulates the production of hormones that contribute to brain cell growth. In addition, the ability of physical exercise to prevent chronic diseases can translate into benefits for the brain, since these diseases can compromise brain functions (32).

Regular physical activity is especially important in older adults, as aging - combined with oxidative stress and inflammation - promotes changes in brain structure and function (see studies on this: 33 and 34).

Physical exercise has been shown to cause the hippocampus, a vital part of the brain for memory and learning, to grow in size. This helps to increase mental function in older adults (33, 34, and 35). Exercising has also been shown to reduce the changes in the brain that can cause Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia (36).

8. Can help with relaxation and sleep quality

Regular exercise can help you relax and sleep better (37 and 38). Regarding the quality of sleep, the energy expenditure that occurs during exercise stimulates the recovery processes during sleep (38). In addition, the increase in body temperature that occurs during exercise is believed to improve the quality of sleep, helping our bodies to better regulate temperature while we sleep (39).

Many studies of the effects of exercise on sleep have come to similar conclusions. One study found that 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity a week can provide up to 65% improvement in sleep quality (40). Another showed that 16 weeks of physical activity increased sleep quality and helped 17 people with insomnia sleep longer and deeper than the control group. Regular physical exercise also helped them feel more energized during the day (41).

In addition, regular exercise appears to be beneficial for the elderly, who are more affected by sleep disorders (41, 42, and 43).

The good news is that you can choose from different types of exercise. It appears that aerobic exercise alone or aerobic exercise combined with resistance training can also help with sleep quality (44).

9. Can reduce pain

Chronic pain can be debilitating, but exercise can actually help reduce it (45). For many years, the recommendation for the treatment of chronic pain has been rest and inactivity, but recent studies show that regular exercise actually helps alleviate chronic pain (45).

A review of several studies indicates that exercise training helped participants with chronic pain reduce their pain and improve their quality of life (45). Several studies show that exercise can help manage pain associated with a variety of health conditions, including chronic low back pain, fibromyalgia, and chronic shoulder pain, to name a few (46).

In addition, physical activity can also increase pain tolerance and decrease pain perception (47 and 48).

10. Promotes a better sex life

Regular physical exercise has been proven to increase sexual desire (49, 50, and 51). Regular exercise can strengthen your cardiovascular system, improve blood circulation, tone your muscles, and increase flexibility, all of which help improve your sex life (49 and 51).

Exercise can improve sexual performance and sexual pleasure, in addition to increasing the frequency of sexual activity (50 and 52). A group of women in their 40s reported experiencing orgasms more frequently by incorporating more strenuous exercise, such as shooting practice, weight training, and weight training, into their lifestyle (53).

Furthermore, in a group of 178 healthy men, men who reported more hours of exercise per week had higher levels of sexual function (50). One study found that a simple six-minute walk around the house helped 41 men reduce their erectile dysfunction symptoms by 71% (54).

Another study of 78 sedentary men showed how 60 minutes of walking a day (three and a half days a week, on average) improved sexual behavior, including frequency, proper functioning, and satisfaction (55).

In addition, another study demonstrated that women suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome, which can reduce sexual desire, increased their desire with regular resistance training for 16 weeks (56).

Conclusion

The benefits of exercise are incredible and can improve almost every aspect of your health from the inside out. Regular physical activity increases the production of hormones that make you feel happier and can help you sleep better.

Exercising can also improve the appearance of your skin, help you lose or keep your weight under control, decrease your risk of chronic disease, and improve your sex life. Anyone who plays a specific sport or follows the WHO guidelines of 150 minutes of physical activity per week inevitably helps their health in a number of ways (57).

If you are still a sedentary person, how about starting to practice physical exercises? Start small, choose a modality that you like and don't cover yourself. Go at your own pace and enjoy the benefits that exercise will bring to your health. Our list of twenty exercises to do at home or alone can help you.