Why Should People Exercise to Lose Weight?
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Your body needs food for energy. If you eat more than is needed for your normal day-to-day activity and for what your body needs to repair and renew itself, the excess energy is stored as fat. Which means you’ll put on some weight.
Therefore, to achieve effective weight loss, your body must burn more calories than you eat, so that on the one hand you don’t add to your existing body fat, and on the other, so you can reduce the excess fat your body is already carrying. This is why people should exercise to lose weight.
The human body is designed to move. The very act of moving around more will help you control your weight better. Whenever you engage in physical activity that you don’t normally do, you are burning calories, and ultimately fat. Exercise can help you lose weight and maintain a healthy weight over the longer term.
People often find it hard to lose weight by changing their eating habits. Certain foods are difficult to give up or cut back on for a lot of would-be dieters and they cannot control their appetite. But if they were just to involve themselves in some form of regular exercise – that is, doing something/anything physical every day – then they are far more likely to reduce their weight, and to keep it off.
You probably know the medical reasons why exercise is good for you.
Regular exercise helps to:
- Increase your energy
- Improve digestion
- Aid blood flow and minimize the risk of heart and other cardiovascular diseases
- Reduce stress levels by improving your mood, and thereby minimizing the risk of depression
- Prevent or control many diseases such as stroke, arthritis, type 2 diabetes
- Lower the risk of some cancers
- Aid better sleep
…. and that’s just the short version.
Carrying too much weight can be life threatening. The strain on the heart and on leg joints for example, of carrying too much weight, of being obese, is well documented, and should be enough to encourage overweight people to recognize the benefits of a daily workout. Even modest workouts like walking more or using stairs instead of the elevator, can bring about an improvement in weight and general fitness.
It is easy enough to lose a few pounds in weight each week when dieting. Most diets, fad diets included, can achieve this in the early stages as eating habits change. But many people want to lose weight without changing their eating habits for long, or without reducing their calorie intake, and find losing weight a difficult and frustrating challenge. For them, the introduction of daily exercises can make all the difference.
The different types of exercises engaged in are not that important. What is important is getting yourself exercising regularly at something that increases your heart rate.
Your doctor should be consulted before you become more active, of course, just to make sure you don’t overdo things, but exercise helps people of all ages and is generally encouraged by the medical profession.
It all sounds simple, doesn’t it? And it is, but it is YOU who has to make some changes to your lifestyle for it to happen. You’ll feel a better person for these changes – fitter and healthier and lighter – but you will need the self discipline to bring it all about.
So, if you are thinking about weight loss and have been wondering <strong>why people should exercise to lose weight</strong>, get stuck into a training program of some sort, no matter how modest.
Whether you want to lose fat generally, reduce the size of your butt, lose your love handles, want to drop a few pounds for a wedding or a beach vacation, introduce some form of regular exercises into your daily routines and notice the difference.
People new to physical activity have found that when they exercised they experienced health benefits they didn’t realize before. Working out with some form of cardio or aerobic exercise – whatever type of exercises are right for you – will help you lose and control your weight, but as importantly, will help you become a fitter and healthier person as well. Good luck.
