Exercise has many benefits, both curative and preventive, for physical and mental health. Any amount of exercise, even if it falls below the suggested amount, is likely to produce benefits.
Back in 1953, a pioneering epidemiological study in The Lancet showed that rates of coronary heart disease were lower among physically active London bus conductors than among less active bus drivers.
According to a recent reviewTrusted Source
This article looks at some specific benefits of regular exercise for mental and physical health.
1. Improves cardiovascular health
Regular exercise is good for heart health. Possible benefits include:
Reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease is an important benefit of exercise.
A person can begin experiencing the benefits of regular exercise right awayTrusted Source CDCTrusted Source recommend that adults perform 150 minutes a week of at least moderate intensity activity.
The benefits continue to increase as people are more active than this.
2. Helps with diabetes management
improving control of blood glucose
reducing cardiovascular risk factors
helping with weight loss
helping with general well-being
delaying or preventing the development of type 2 diabetes
improving cardiovascular fitness
strengthening muscles
improving insulin sensitivity
The ADA say, “Physical activity and exercise should be recommended and prescribed to all individuals with diabetes as part of management of glycemic control and overall health.”
3. Reduces risk of some cancers
colon
stomach
esophageal
breast
bladder
uterine (endometrial)
kidney
For example, a 2016 analysis of 26 breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer studies found a 37% reduction in cancer-specific mortality when comparing the most active patients with the least active.
4. Improves mental health and mood
Longer term, regular exercise can also help reduce the risk of depression .
Regular exercise can help prevent the bone density loss that occurs with aging, say the CDCTrusted Source
Moderate or vigorous muscle-strengthening and aerobic exercise, as well as bone-strengthening programs, can all helpTrusted Source
Weight-bearing exercises, such as walking and dancing, and resistance exercises are particularly good for bone health.
6. Helps build and strengthen muscles
7. Increases chance of living longer
Even better, the benefits start to accumulate with modest amounts of moderate-to-vigorous exercise. The greatest jump occurs when a person goes from being “inactive” to being “insufficiently active.”
8. Helps maintain a moderate weight
The CDCTrusted Source say there is good evidence that exercise can help maintain weight over time, although it may take more than the recommended amount to do so.
In general, losing weight and then keeping it off also require a healthful, balanced diet.
It is easy to overestimate the number of calories that exercise burns.
The CDCTrusted Source give some examples of the calories that a person weighing 154 pounds would burn during an hour of activity for:
hiking: 370 calories
light gardening: 330 calories
running or jogging at 5 miles per hour: 590 calories
9. May help with chronic pain
In 2017, an overviewTrusted Source of Cochrane Reviews, which look systematically at the evidence for particular interventions, examined whether exercise and physical activity help with chronic pain in adults.
The study concluded that a definitive answer would require more research.
The authors note that although the quality of evidence was generally low, “There is some evidence of improved physical function and a variable effect on both psychological function and quality of life.”
None of the interventions appeared to cause any harm. The authors of the overview noted limited evidence regarding improvement in pain severity.
10. Helps prevents falls for older adults
According to the CDCTrusted Source
increasing the efficiency of sleep
improving sleep quality and deep sleep
reducing daytime drowsiness
reducing the need for sleep medication
12. Helps with osteoporosis
Regular exercise also helps prevent falls and fractures related to muscle weakness and lack of balance, which is particularly important for people with osteoporosis.
13. Improves brain function and reduces risk of dementia
In people over the age of 50 years, exercise also improves certain aspects of cognition, such as processing speed.
A 2016 studyTrusted Source reviewed the evidence indicating that physical activity, cognitive activity (such as learning new skills), and eating a Mediterranean-style diet promote “brain health” in older adults.
The results suggested that these behaviors, perhaps in combination, may help keep the cognitive manifestations of aging and neurodegenerative disease at bay.
Please note: Medical News Today does not imply a warranty of fitness for a particular purpose or endorse any of these applications. Nobody at has evaluated them for medical accuracy. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved them unless otherwise indicated.
Some benefits arise with very small increases in physical activity for people who are currently inactive.
Even if a person is far from meeting the recommended weekly activity levels, those first small steps are important and worthwhile.
