It’s time to start moving. It’s easy to excuse a sedentary stretch, but there’s no better time than now to get active again. Weight loss is always the go-to motivator — we’re told to exercise to hit our weight goals, and that’s genuinely good advice. But there are so many more reasons to move your body, and when activity gets too tightly wound up with the number on the scale, it doesn’t always stick. So let me give you some even better reasons to get moving.
Just How Important Is This, Really?
Exercise isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s one of the most powerful tools we have for extending your life and protecting your health. Research shows that active people have a 30 to 60 percent lower mortality rate than inactive people, and meeting the standard activity guidelines can cut cardiovascular disease mortality by 22 to 31 percent. Even modest amounts help: physically inactive people who added just 50 minutes of moderate activity a week saw a 31 percent drop in mortality risk. Researchers estimate that 110,000 deaths a year among U.S. adults 40 and older could be prevented with more moderate-to-vigorous activity.
And yet, as of the most recent CDC data, only about 47 percent of U.S. adults meet the federal aerobic activity guidelines, and just 22.5 percent meet both the aerobic and muscle-strengthening guidelines together. Most of us are leaving a lot of benefit on the table.
The Mood Cure
We’ve all heard of the “runner’s high” — the endorphins released during high-impact activity. But exercise’s effect on mood goes well beyond that, and the benefits show up even with low-impact movement like walking, swimming, and yoga. These activities help lower cortisol, the adrenal hormone behind that stressed-out, wired feeling. They also sharpen your ability to think clearly and manage stress, which leaves you less angry, tense, and tired.
Hormone Regulation
Stress hormones aren’t the only ones that benefit from regular movement — sex hormone regulation does too. Women who exercise regularly tend to have less menstrual cramping and fewer PMS symptoms, like moodiness and bloating. They also report greater sexual interest and better sexual function overall.
Risk Reduction
One study found that physical inactivity outranks obesity, smoking, and high blood pressure as a cause of heart disease in women over 30. In other words, regardless of your weight or how well you’re managing your other health goals, exercise on its own lowers your risk of the number one killer of women in the U.S.
Putting It Together
Finding just 30 minutes a day for a walk, a bike ride, or a yoga class can leave you less stressed, boost your libido, support more regular cycles, and add real years to your life. It really is that straightforward.
So Why Aren’t We Doing It?
The biggest barrier I hear from patients is time — nobody feels like they have an extra 30 minutes. So we get creative. We find the space and prioritize movement for all the reasons above. It doesn’t need to happen in one block, and it definitely doesn’t need to happen at a gym. Skip one TV show for a bike ride around the neighborhood. Hand off a chore, and turn the time you’d have spent doing dishes into a walk around the block. Turn house cleaning itself into a full-body workout.
Take advantage of what’s online, too. You don’t need a yoga studio membership to pull up a short routine on YouTube during your lunch break. An “8-minute abs” video is a great way to spend a commercial break. It doesn’t really matter how — just aim to be the kind of person who moves every day. I think you’ll be genuinely happy with the results.
Contact me to talk about what type of exercise could realistically fit into your lifestyle.
— Dr. Faith Christensen
Sources: CDC — Benefits of Physical Activity, Physical Activity, Health Benefits, and Mortality Risk, CDC — Data & Statistics for Physical Activity