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If you work exercise into your regular schedule, you're at less of a risk for heart disease.
"Regular exercise can help improve your heart health."

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Exercise and chronic disease: Get the facts

If you have a chronic condition, you might have questions about exercising. How often can you exercise? Which exercises are safe? Understand the basics about exercise and chronic disease.
By Mayo Clinic Staff
If you have a chronic disease - such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, or back or joint pain - exercise can have important health benefits. However, it's important to talk to your doctor before starting an exercise routine. He or she might have advice on what exercises are safe and any precautions you might need to take while exercising.

Find out what you need to know about exercise and chronic disease.

How can exercise improve a chronic condition?

If you have a chronic condition, regular exercise can help you manage symptoms and improve your health.

Aerobic exercise can help improve your heart health and endurance and aid in weight loss. High-intensity interval training is generally safe and effective for most people and can take less time. In high-intensity interval training, you alternate exercising at high levels of intensity and exercising at a less intense level for short periods of time. Even activities such as walking at higher intensities count.

Strength training can improve muscle strength and endurance, make it easier to do daily activities, slow disease-related declines in muscle strength, and provide stability to joints.

Flexibility exercises may help you to have optimal range of motion about your joints, so they can function best, and stability exercises may help reduce the risk of falls.

For example:

Heart disease. Regular exercise can help improve your heart health. Recent studies have shown that interval training is often tolerated well in people with heart disease, and it can produce significant benefits.

For people with high blood pressure, exercise can lower your risk of dying of heart disease and lower the risk of heart disease progressing.

Diabetes. Regular exercise can help insulin more effectively lower your blood sugar level. Physical activity can also help you control your weight and boost your energy. If you have type 2 diabetes, exercise can lower your risk of dying of heart disease.

Asthma. Often, exercise can help control the frequency and severity of asthma attacks.

Back pain. Regular low-impact aerobic activities can increase strength and endurance in your back and improve muscle function. Abdominal and back muscle exercises (core-strengthening exercises) may help reduce symptoms by strengthening the muscles around your spine.

Arthritis. Exercise can reduce pain, help maintain muscle strength in affected joints and reduce joint stiffness. It can also improve physical function and quality of life for people who have arthritis.

Cancer. Exercise can improve the quality of life for people who've had cancer, and it can also improve their fitness. Exercise can also lower the risk of dying from breast, colorectal and prostate cancer.

Dementia. Exercise can improve cognition in people with dementia, and people who are active on a regular basis are at less risk of dementia and cognitive impairment.

What exercises are safe?

Your doctor might recommend specific exercises to reduce pain or build strength. Depending on your condition, you might also need to avoid certain exercises altogether or during flare-ups. In some cases, you might need to consult a physical or occupational therapist before starting to exercise.

If you have low back pain, for example, you might choose low-impact aerobic activities, such as walking and swimming. These types of activities won't strain or jolt your back.

If you have exercise-induced asthma, be sure to keep an inhaler handy while you exercise.

If you have arthritis, the exercises that are best for you will depend on the type of arthritis and which joints are involved. Work with your doctor or a physical therapist to create an exercise plan that will give you the most benefit with the least aggravation on your joints.

How often, how much and at what intensity can I safely exercise?

Before starting an exercise routine, it's important to talk to your doctor about how long your exercise sessions can be and what level of intensity is safe for you.

In general, try to accumulate about 30 minutes of physical activity a day at least five days a week. For example, try walking briskly for about 30 minutes most days of the week. You can even break physical activity up into short chunks of time spread out through the day. Any activity is better than none at all.

If you're not able to do this much activity, do as much as you can. Even an hour a week of physical activity can have health benefits. Start with moving more and sitting less, and work your way up to moving more each day.

If you haven't been active for a while, start slowly and build up gradually. Ask your doctor what kind of exercise goals you can safely set for yourself as you progress.

Do I need to take special steps before getting started?

Depending on your condition, your doctor might recommend certain precautions before exercising.

If you have diabetes, for example, keep in mind that physical activity lowers blood sugar. Check your blood sugar level before any activity. If you take insulin or diabetes medications that lower blood sugar, you might need to eat a snack before exercising to help prevent low blood sugar.

If you have arthritis, consider taking a warm shower before you exercise. Heat can relax your joints and muscles and relieve any pain you might have before you begin. Also, be sure to choose shoes that provide shock absorption and stability during exercise.

What kind of discomfort can I expect?

Talk to your doctor about what kind of discomfort you might expect during or after exercise, as well as any tips for minimizing your pain. Find out what type or degree of pain might be normal and what might be a sign of something more serious.

If you have heart disease, for example, signs or symptoms that you should stop exercising include dizziness, unusual shortness of breath, chest pain or an irregular heartbeat.

What else do I need to know?

Starting a regular exercise routine can be tough.

To help you stick with your routine, consider exercising with a friend. You might also ask your doctor to recommend an exercise program for people who have your condition, perhaps through a local hospital, clinic or health club.

To stay motivated, choose activities that are fun, set realistic goals and celebrate your progress.

Share any concerns you might have about your exercise program - from getting started to keeping it up - with your doctor.

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What you need to know about exercise and chronic disease

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If you have a chronic condition, you might have questions about exercising. How often can you exercise? Which exercises are safe? Understand the basics about exercise and chronic disease. By Mayo Clinic Staff If you have a chronic disease - such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, or back or joint pain - exercise can have important health benefits.

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Exercise can improve your self confidence, which can help you in social situations.
"When you have self-esteem and self-confidence, your social relations improve."

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We all know the physical benefits of regular exercise. Daily physical activity strengthens your heart muscles, helping prevent heart disease and stroke. It lowers blood pressure and helps fight obesity by reducing body fat, keeping your weight under control.

But beyond all the amazing physical benefits that you get from exercise and engaging in physical activity, did you know that it also affects you on a social and emotional level?
The Emotional Benefits of Physical Activity
Exercise releases feel-good chemicals in your brain such as endorphins which can give your mood a boost. Endorphins are the same chemicals that help your body manage pain. And this explains why endorphins also have the power to make you feel better and why something as simple as a jog or brisk walk can instantly improve how you feel. These chemicals in your brain make you feel more positive and focused, allowing you to let go of any stress you may be feeling. You feel calmer and altogether, happier.

Regular physical activity also improves your self-image which increases your confidence. People who get regular cardio and complement it with strength-training are typically trying to meet their fitness goals. And as they see results of their hard work, they feel empowered and accomplished. And because regular physical activity helps keep you at a healthy weight, you're happier with your physical appearance.
The Social Benefits of Physical Activity
When you have self-esteem and self-confidence, your social relations improve. Because you feel good about yourself and have emotional health, you don't shy away from social interactions. In fact, you may even take the first step to meeting new people and establishing new friendships.

People who engage in physical activity have the opportunity to meet new people all the time. You meet people running the same trail as you. You make acquaintances with the people you meet in yoga or cycling class. You might even join a team sport and make friends with all your teammates.

The social benefits don't just mean that you make friends effortlessly but that you know how to handle yourself in social environments. And this is a great characteristic to have if you find yourself socializing with people often. Maybe your job puts you in front of people every day, or your work has you attending a lot of social events. Your job may even require that you to work in teams. And because of the social benefits of physical activity such as regular exercise or participating in a sport, you know how to work well with others.

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What Are the Social and Emotional Benefits of Physical Activity? | League Network, PBC

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We all know the physical benefits of regular exercise. Daily physical activity strengthens your heart muscles, helping prevent heart disease and stroke. It lowers blood pressure and helps fight obesity by reducing body fat, keeping your weight under control.

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You'll feel better about yourself and be more happy with the person that you are. It can also can lower stress levels. "Another mental benefit of exercise is reduced stress levels—something that can make us all happier."

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Setting the Stage (by Example)

Dr. Shawna Charles, who received a PhD in Psychology from Walden University, put her love of psychology into action by opening a Los Angeles boxing gym to provide people with the help they need, including fitness, an ear to listen to their problems, and a connection to vital social services. Dr. Charles, like many others in her field, understands the connection between good physical and mental health.

The Psychological Benefits of Exercise

Most of us know the many physical benefits of exercise: weight control, lower blood pressure, reduced risk of diabetes, and increased energy, just to name a few. But what about the psychological benefits of exercise? From easing symptoms of depression and anxiety to keeping your memory sharp, there's no shortage of mental benefits of exercise. Whether you need motivation to get to the gym or to just take a brisk walk, the five psychological benefits of physical activity below will have you tying up your shoe laces and heading out the door.

1. Help for depression and anxiety
Exercise is a scientifically proven mood booster, decreasing symptoms of both depression and anxiety. Physical activity kicks up endorphin levels, the body's famous "feel good" chemical produced by the brain and spinal cord that produces feelings of happiness and euphoria. Even just moderate exercise throughout the week can improve depression and anxiety, so much so that some doctors recommend trying out an exercise regimen for these conditions before turning to medication.

2. Decreased stress
Another mental benefit of exercise is reduced stress levels-something that can make us all happier. Increasing your heart rate can actually reverse stress-induced brain damage by stimulating the production of neurohormones like norepinephrine, which not only improve cognition and mood but improve thinking clouded by stressful events. Exercise also forces the body's central and sympathetic nervous systems to communicate with one another, improving the body's overall ability to respond to stress.

3. Increased self-esteem and self-confidence
From improving endurance to losing weight and increasing muscle tone, there's no shortage of physical achievements that come about from regular exercise. All those achievements can all add up to a whopping boost of self-esteem-and the confidence that comes with it. You may not set out for better-fitting clothes, a slimmer physique, and the ability to climb a hill without getting winded. Oftentimes it happens before you even realize it. It's just one of the many benefits of physical activity that boost your body, mind, and spirit.

4. Better sleep
If you have trouble getting a good night's sleep, exercise can help with that, too. Physical activity increases body temperature, which can have calming effects on the mind, leading to less sheep counting and more shuteye. Exercise also helps regulate your circadian rhythm, our bodies' built-in alarm clock that controls when we feel tired and when we feel alert. (Although improved sleep is a psychological benefit of exercise, sleep experts recommend not exercising close to bedtime.)

5. Brain boost
From building intelligence to strengthening memory, exercise boosts brainpower in a number of ways. Studies on mice and humans indicate that cardiovascular exercise creates new brain cells-a process called neurogenesis-and improve overall brain performance. It also prevents cognitive decline and memory loss by strengthening the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for memory and learning. Studies also prove that physical activity boosts creativity and mental energy. So if you're in need of inspiration, your big idea could be just a walk or jog away.

Fascinated by the mental benefits of exercise? Or how exercise can improve depression or anxiety? A bachelor's in psychology will give you the knowledge you need to help others by making meaningful contributions in the field of psychology.
Even if you work full time, a bachelor's in psychology is something you can achieve. Featuring a flexible, socially conscious learning environment, Walden University makes higher education possible in an online format that fits your busy life. Learn how you can help others with an online BS in Psychology from Walden.

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Exercise isn't just great for your body, it's great for your brain. Check out these 5 mental benefits of exercise.

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Can prevent things like heart disease and obesity. Exercising daily also improves your productivity.   "Exercising increases the amount of endorphins that are released into your body and increases productivity."

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Are you in need of work out motivation? Well you're in luck because here are 12 fun facts about exercising that are sure to inspire you.

Listening to music while exercising can improve work out performance by 15%.
2. Exercising improves brain performance

Cardiovascular exercise helps create new brain cells. This
improves brain power and brain activity.

Exercising increases the production of cells that are responsible for learning and memory

4. Running burns calories!

If you run at a 10 minute per mile pace you can burn 104.3 calories per mile.
5. More muscle mass = burning more fat while resting
The more muscle mass you have, the more fat your body burns while resting.

6.Exercise prevents signs of aging

If you exercise 3 times a week for 45 minutes you can help prevent signs of aging.

Having more muscle than fat means you can consume more calories.

Exercising on a regular basis helps boost your immune system.
This means you'll get sick less often than people who don't exercise.

Exercising increases the amount of endorphins that are released into your body and increases productivity.

Sweat releases dirt through your pores which reduces acne and breakouts.
Workouts improve the overall look of your skin.

Exercising can help ease your mind and rejuvenate your body. Working out will make you feel great and boost your confidence.
12 Working out helps you sleep better

If you're someone who has trouble sleeping or staying asleep then working out
is your answer.Exercise helps to clear your head and helps you feel relaxed.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015 in News
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Are you in need of work out motivation? Well you're in luck because here are 12 fun facts about exercising that are sure to inspire you. 1. Music improves workout performance Listening to music while exercising can improve work out performance by 15%. 2. Exercising improves brain performance Cardiovascular exercise helps create new brain cells.