If you want to live a long and healthy life, there is one habit that you should never neglect: exercise. Exercise is not only good for your body, but also for your mind and mood. It can help you prevent and manage many chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and dementia. It can also improve your quality of life, by enhancing your strength, balance, mobility, and cognitive function.
Aerobic Exercise: The Heart Of Longevity
Aerobic exercise is any activity that makes your heart beat faster and your lungs work harder, such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, or dancing. Aerobic exercise improves your cardiovascular health, by lowering your blood pressure, cholesterol, and inflammation. It also boosts your metabolism, by burning calories and fat. And it stimulates your brain, by increasing blood flow and oxygen delivery.
Resistance Training: The Muscle Of Longevity
Resistance training is any activity that makes your muscles work against a force, such as lifting weights, doing push-ups, or using resistance bands. Resistance training builds and maintains your muscle mass and strength, which tend to decline with age. This can help you prevent and treat sarcopenia, a condition characterized by loss of muscle mass and function that leads to frailty and disability. Resistance training also improves your bone health, by increasing bone density and preventing osteoporosis.
The Best Of Both Worlds: Combining Aerobic And Resistance Training
If you want to maximize your health and longevity potential, you should combine aerobic and resistance training in your weekly routine. This way, you can enjoy the benefits of both types of exercise for your heart, brain, muscles, bones, and metabolism. Studies have shown that people who do both aerobic and resistance training have lower rates of mortality and disease than people who do only one or none.
The Bottom Line: Exercise Is Essential For Longevity
Exercise is not only a way to stay fit and active, but also a way to stay alive and well. Exercise can help you prevent many age-related diseases and conditions, as well as improve your mental and physical function. Exercise can also make you happier and more resilient to stress.
If you take care of your health through exercise, there is a huge potential for aging well. But exercise alone is not enough. You also need to eat a balanced diet that provides enough protein and other nutrients for your muscles and organs. Research has shown that exercise encourages healthier eating8, by reducing cravings for unhealthy foods and increasing appetite for healthy foods.