Running Your Way to Better Health

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 People are beginning to realise that being significantly overweight leads to potential health risks from diabetes, heart, and artery disorders.  You may not particularly want to spend hours sweating in the gym, but according to a recent article here, there is an easier way to keep trim by running your way to better health.

According to the article it is generally recognised that physical activity is a vital part of maintaining a healthy weight for men. Obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease risk can be decreased with taking some time out of your day to engage in physical activity

Fine, maybe you don’t have time to really engage in a lot of physical activity. Work, family, and other obligations may limit the time you have for yourself but that doesn’t mean you can’t stand, literally, up for health. Standing, alone, for just 30 minutes can burn 61 calories for an average American man. While standing, maybe you need to take care of some chores at the office or at home. While doing these tasks, you are actually burning around 228 calories in an hour. That’s not bad for someone who has no time to do anything.

That “honey-do” list you need to get cleared can also improve your health. Cleaning those gutters or mowing the lawn can burn around 450 calories in an hour. Taking the dog out for a walk can burn over 300 calories in an hour. Cleaning up the garage or that time you spending working on your car will also help burn calories.

Elsewhere in the home, sex can burn over 350 calories in an hour.

Maybe those little boosts for your calories are not cutting it for you and need the ultimate calorie burning exercise. Turns out, nothing can really beat a good run. An eight-minute mile pace can have you burning over 1,100 calories in an hour, or around 550 calories in 30 minutes. The faster the pace, the more calories you’ll be burning with a six-minute mile pace burning over 1,400 calories.

All this may not be news to some, but there are many people who possibly don’t realize how easy it is to incorporate some regular exercise into their daily routine by simply doing some chores around the house and garden, plus a short daily run that can be fitted in at a time that’s most convenient. If you’re an early riser you might jog around the block first thing before breakfast and you will be amazed at the benefits. It will clear your head ready for the day ahead, sharpen your appetite, and most importantly, it will strengthen your heart and help prevent furring up of the arteries. Alternatively you can take half an hour of an evening to go for a run, and dispel the cares of the day by means of physical exercise that releases endorphins that act in the brain to make you feel good.

There is no doubt that regular physical exercise is one of the key factors in keeping fit and maintaining your proper body weight; running your way to better health is a distinct proposition for those whose lives are too busy for pre-planned gym workouts, because you can run almost anywhere, any time.