Most people know that exercising is good for you, but most people don’t know exactly why. About one of three children are physically active everyday. And less than 5% of adults participate in 30 min of physical activity/exercise each day. Nobody is the same, everyone has a different body type, so exercise affects people differently from others. There are the general health benefits, mental health, and physical exercise for a person. 

There are many ways to make your body healthier but one of the most effective ways is to exercise. Exercising has many general benefits. One of which is cardiovascular endurance and muscle endurance. Cardiovascular endurance and muscle endurance is muscles being able to work for longer periods of time making it easier to do things (Wexler 2013.) So having a strong heart and strong muscles can help you do the things that you enjoy longer. Another general benefit of exercising is making your bones stronger. “Physical activity not only builds muscles, it builds stronger bones. The type of exercise that builds bones is weight bearing or strength bearing” (Wexler 2013.) With stronger bones, you are able to have a stronger and more stable body, which will help you in the long run. Those are some of the general benefits of physical exercise.

More people than you would think struggle with mental health problems. One thing that can help with mental health is physical activity. Physical activity and mental health for women are closely related (Henderson 1996.) Mental health problems are more well known in women than they are in men. There is a saying that if you look good you feel good. Which for many people is accurate. If a person feels that they look good then that person’s confidence can grow. Sports and any type of exercise can give women and girls a sense of entitlement and empowerment in their lives (Henderson 1996.) When a person plays a sport then it can bring them confidence when they do good and all of their hard work pays off. Those are some reasons why physical exercise can help with mental health. 

When cancer patients go through treatment, the treatment typically weakens the patient's body. The treatments can make them feel really sick. Physical activity can actually help with different aspects of the side effects of treatment. After exercising, breast cancer patients had improvements in areas like blood sugar control, body mass index (BMI), fatigue, and mental health problems (Focus on Healthy Aging 2012.) For cancer patients there are different ways to exercise for the best results for the cancer patients. There are different levels of exercise for different types of cancer. For breast cancer patients they found that aerobic exercises and resistance exercises gave them the best results (Focus on Healthy Aging 2012.) Those are some of the reasons why exercising can help with the side effects of cancer patients. 

Most people know that exercising is good for you, but hopefully now you know some of the benefits that exercise can have on your body. So hopefully in the future the 5% of adults who exercise a day will go up and that will help the overall population become healthier. So the next time you have any free time, think about going on a walk, a run or even going to the gym. 

Work Cited:

Exercise beneficial for cancer patients. (2012, April). Focus on Healthy Aging, 15(4), 3. link.gale.com/apps/doc/A285321792/SUIC?u=elkhorn nhs sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=f3375537 

Henderson, K. A., & Winn, S. (1996, August). Females and physical activity. Parks & Recreation, 31(8), 28. link.gale.com/apps/doc/A18605294/SUIC?u=elkhornnhs&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=4ecc4b86 

Webb, D. (2023, January). Effects of Physical Activity on Digestion: Movement impacts overall health, but what about digestion?. Environmental Nutrition, 46(1), 3. link.gale.com/apps/doc/A731129711/SUIC?u=elkhornnhs&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=84cf054a 

Wexler, B. (2013). Physical Fitness and Exercise. In E. P. Manar (Ed.), Healthy Living (2nd ed., Vol. 1, pp. 43-75). UXL. link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2763900010/SUIC?u=elkhornnhs&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=66dd2e75