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Submitted by PatientsEngage on 8 February 2015

Think you know all the reasons? Prepare to be surprised. By family practitioner and marathoner Dr Gita Mathai. Plus, how much to exercise to get its real benefits.

We all want to look good, be slim and healthy. There’s one magic pill for this and it’s called exercise. Even if you’re ‘too tired’ or ‘too busy’, you need to get off that couch now. 

Benefits of regular exercise

Exercise helps to achieve ideal body weight if also combined with calorie restriction. Exercise alone will not shed the kilos. If you wish to maintain your present weight, calculate 15-20 calories per kilo of your present body weight. You can use the same formula to help you reduce weight. The calories lost in exercise can be factored into the daily food intake. You can also check your ideal body weight with the BMI calculator  (http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/lose_wt/BMI/bmicalc.htm). BMI is a measure of body fat in respect of your height and weight. (BMI categories are: 

  • Underweight = <18.5
  • Normal weight = 18.5–24.9 (In Singapore HPB recommends an upper limit of 23 for Asians)
  • Overweight = 25–29.9
  • Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

Lipids (fats) are responsible for a variety of diseases like heart attacks and strokes. The fat deposits itself in the arteries of the brain and heart. It blocks them causing heart attack and stroke. Exercise has a lipid lowering effect. Blood vessels open up as a result of exercise. Also, natural bypasses and anastomosis form between existing vessels bypassing blocks. In short, think of it as a natural free stenting procedure or angioplasty!

People with diabetes need to maintain a diet and take tablets or insulin to keep their sugars normal. Exercise reduces the requirements for both.

Stress is responsible for precipitating many lifestyle diseases. During exercise, chemicals are released from the muscles in the legs, arms and trunk. These are carried in the blood stream, cross over into the brain and elevate mood.

Bones need calcium so that they are strong and do not fracture easily. Calcium from the diet or medical supplements can efficiently enter the bones only when there are micro fractures in the structure and matrix of the bone. These fractures occur only with exercise. 

Muscles get toned with exercise and become more efficient. Fatigue takes longer to set in and recovery is faster. The more rest you take, the more tired you will feel.

Do you feel too tired to exercise? Regular workouts condition the muscles, boost energy and combat fatigue. You can, eventually, like the advertisement for the Energizer battery, go “on and on”.

Insomnia, struggling to fall asleep and stay asleep is a twentieth century bane. People who exercise regularly fall asleep the minute their heads touch the pillow. They seldom have “daytime drowsiness”.

Most people have a circle of acquaintances and friends who fit in the same stereotype. While exercising, you meet new people from all walks of life. You find new friends, broadening your perspective on life.

How much to exercise

Children need to start exercising from a young age, led by parents who set the example. Right from the toddler stage, children need an hour of physical activity a day. Ideally, adults should ideally exercise aerobically for the same length of time. The recommendations for adults vary from an hour a day (ideal) to 30 minutes three days a week (the bare minimum). The minimum means “something is better than nothing!” There is no difference in the recommendations for men and women.

What sort of exercise should you do

Children can play ball, skip, play hide and seek or run with parents. Standing and saying “run, run” to a child will not work. 

For adults, equivalents are (please review these targets with your physician if you have not been leading an active lifestyle)

  • Non-stop skipping 1000 times 
  • Climbing stairs for 15 minutes 
  • Walking 10000 steps or 4 km in 1 hour
  • Swimming or cycling for an hour

In addition to aerobic physical activity, strength training with repetitions with light weights will help maintain muscle mass. Simple stretches, yoga or Tai chi will maintain flexibility.

While exercising aerobically (running, swimming, jogging, walking, skipping, climbing stairs), you should try to achieve your target heart rate. 

To do this, first calculate your target heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. 

If you are 50 years old, your target heart rate is 170. Try to exercise to achieve 80% of your target heart rate. 

Everyone is always looking for a magic bullet, a panacea for all illnesses and lifestyle diseases, to lose weight or to maintain health. Exercise is really the only thing that achieves all this! 

Of course it is not easy to follow a regular regimen. It is far easier to sit in front of the television and decide that “tomorrow is another day”.

But for a better tomorrow, it’s better to get off that couch now.

Dr Gita Mathai also has a black belt in karate, is an aerobics instructor and national level competitive swimmer.