Benefits of Aerobic Exercise
Exericse is the best medicine and the benefits of aerobic exercise are numerous. One key point – aerobic exercise must be done regularly for the benefits to persist. Once you stop an exercise program the benefits will eventually fade away. Today we will just focus on six benefits of aerobic exercise.
- Improved calorie burning.
- Improved body composition.
- Improved energy.
- Improved neuromuscular function.
- Improved sense of well-being.
- Improve sexual function.
Improved Calorie Burning
All forms of exercise burn additional calories above our resting metabolic rate. Most of those extra calories are burned during the actual exercise, but the metabolic rate does stay elevated for period of time once the exercise is over. In the case of aerobic or cardio exercise you will typically burn additional calories for another 30 to 60 minutes after you stop exercising. High intensity interval training which incorporates aerobic exercise can lead to additional calorie burning for up to 20 hours or more.
Improved Body Composition
Aerobic exercise allows to burn calories from our fat stores helping us to lose body fat and thus improving our body composition. Though dieting alone can lead to fat loss but there’s only so much you can lose with diet alone. Adding aerobic exercise to your weight loss plan will facilitate the loss of unwanted body fat.
Improved Energy
Though you expend energy exercising you will find that you have more energy to get through the day if you exercise regularly. You will also sleep better (but avoid vigorous exercise to close to bed time). Aerobic exercise is a great stress reliever and stress commonly wears us down and makes it easier to fatigue.
Improved Neuromuscular Function
Regular aerobic exercise improves the transmission of neural impulses to the muscles. This leads to improvement in strength, endurance, coordination, and balance. By improving neurmuscular function exercise improves quality of life and reduces the risks of falls – a major risk factor as we get older.
Improved Sense of Well-Being
The improvement in quality of life leads to an overall sense of well-being. Regular exercisers typically feel better than their sedentary counterparts. They tend to be happier, more productive, and better prepared to handle life’s struggles.
Improved Sexual Function
Sexual function is an overall marker of general health. Sexual function and libido are not the same. Libido is the desire to engage in sex while function is the ability to perform. Libido ranges from individual to individual. But, sexual function should remain intact despite one’s libido. Someone with low libido may still be very sexually functional. Aerobic exercise has been shown to reverse ED or erectile dysfunction and this is true for men who even started exercising not until their middle years. Exercise has many positive effects on blood flow – essential for sexual function.
So there you have just six benefits of aerobic exercise. There is not a drug out there that can do all of that.
