How Exercise Restores Your Vibrance and Youth

Keeping in line with the tip I covered in this story, I know there are many of you that are feeling down in the dumps, worn out, fatigued, and much older than your actual age.

There’s a cure for this.

That cure is: exercise…

Cardio to be exact.

If you read my last story (the aforementioned one), you know I’m a huge advocate for exercise. It just has so many benefits and keeps us looking, feeling, and functioning at our best.

To get the best benefits from your cardio regimen, aim for three times a week (at least twice). Also, from my experience, the first two days should be consecutive and as close to the beginning of the week as possible.

My favorite days to work out are Saturday and Sunday. Technically Saturday is the end of the week, but it leads into Sunday and gets me revved up for the week. Then I’ll usually work out again on Wednesday.

Exercise positively affects us in the following ways:

1) How You Feel

Exercise is hands down the number one most effective natural mood booster. When I work out at the start of the week, exercise helps me to feel good and at peace. When I don’t exercise, I feel low and down.

When we work out and get our heart rate up, our body releases hormones that literally make us feel good.

An article featured by Healthline titled How to Hack Your Hormones for a Better Mood states that “regular physical activity” is a “great option to boost your happy hormones.” The two happy hormones listed are dopamine and serotonin.

Another article distributed by Medical News Today titled Endorphin Release Differs by Exercise Intensity states that “the effect is very much dependent on exercise intensity.” The article goes on to say that to get the maximum feel good benefits the intensity level of exercise must be “moderate” to “vigorous.” The article also adds that exercise has been shown to “alleviate anxiety and depression” and that endorphins reduce the “perception of pain” and increase “feelings of euphoria.”

2) How You Function

Exercise is a well-known energy booster as well. This goes hand in hand with exercise being a well-known mood booster. As I stated earlier, exercise revs me up for the week. When I really get my heart rate up, I feel so good and have an amazing amount of energy that sustains me throughout the week. I not only feel more energized, but I feel more balanced as well.

Often people complain that they don’t have enough energy to exercise. What they don’t realize is that once you start to exercise, the energy kicks in.

But it’s not just a one-time thing. It’s a lasting energy that provides you the boost to work out the next day and the next. In another Healthline article titled The Top Ten Benefits of Regular Exercise, a study is cited where the findings were that “regular exercise reduced feelings of fatigue for 36 people who had reported persistent fatigue.”

3) How You Look

Exercise keeps us young and sharp-minded. We all know people that look significantly younger than they actually are. These people always seem to have the same things in common. They take good care of themselves, eat a healthy diet, and yes, they exercise regularly.

A Time magazine article titled 4 Ways Exercise Helps Fight Aging states that prolonged exercise “delays the onset of 40 chronic conditions or diseases; staves off chronic decline; and may even help people live longer.”

If you want to look, feel, and be your best and live as long as you possibly can with a great quality of life, then exercise must be a regular, non-negotiable part of your health and fitness routine.

All excuses about not having the time and energy to exercise must no longer be an option. Rather than thinking you can’t afford the time to exercise, you must realize that you can’t afford not to exercise.

It’s literally a matter of life and death. And your quality of life depends on it.