5 Benefits of regular exercise for men

Regular exercise is one of the most effective medications that medical practitioners rarely prescribe for you. The benefits of regular exercise on your health are numerous, we will look at few of them in this post.

Exercise does not have to be a heavy one all the time, like lifting heavy weight, jogging long distance and so on. Taking a walk for some distance, skipping, stretching, pushups and some other light exercise will do the magic.


Benefit 1: lower cholesterol

As most men get older, cholesterol numbers begin to move in the wrong direction. Levels of so-called bad cholesterol — low-density lipoprotein (LDL) — gradually increase. Levels of good cholesterol, called high-density lipoprotein (HDL), tend to fall. Unfortunately, that combination of high LDL and low HDL is one of the leading risk factors for heart disease. 

Excess cholesterol accumulates on the inner lining of blood vessels, leading to arthrosclerosis and heart attacks. The best way to keep LDL cholesterol levels down is to eat a diet low in saturated fat (the kind found in meat and high-fat dairy products.) The single best way to boost good HDL cholesterol? Exercise. A  study of 835 men found that regular physical activity was consistently associated with higher levels of HDL cholesterol. A meta-analysis of 52 exercise training trials, including 4700 subjects, found that HDL levels increased an average of 4.6 percent — enough to take a significant notch out of heart disease risk. 



Benefit 2: low risk of high blood pressure

As blood pressure climbs, the risk of heart disease and stroke accelerates. Unfortunately, blood pressure levels typically climb as men get older. But they don’t have to. In a study published in 2007, University of Minnesota researchers followed men and women 18 to 30 years old for up to 15 years. The more physically active the volunteers were, the lower their risk of developing hypertension

Benefit 3: low risk of high blood pressure

To respond to changing demands for oxygen, blood vessels must be flexible enough to widen and narrow. Smoking, cholesterol build-up, and just plain aging tend to stiffen vessels, increasing heart attack risk. A growing number of studies show that exercise training helps maintain the ability of blood vessels to open and constrict in response to changing physical demands.

Benefit 4: It makes you look younger

True, regular exercise won't morph you into George Clooney, but it will roll back the years. The vasodilation that results from exercise leads to more blood reaching the skin’s surface, which revs up collagen production and thwarts wrinkles. The nutrients delivered to the skin during exercise help fibroblasts work more efficiently, so your skin looks younger.” Forget botox and opt for a weekly five-a-side game for a gratis facelift.

Benefit 4: Longer Life

Add it all up and an active life also means a longer and healthier life. In a 2004 study at Finland’s University of Kuopio, researchers followed 15,853 men aged 30 to 59. Over a 20 year period, men who engaged in physically active leisure activities — jogging, skiing, swimming, playing ball, or doing serious gardening — were up to 21% less likely to develop cardiovascular disease or to die of any cause during the study period.

Benefit 5: Better Errections

A series of studies conducted by Harvard University have found a healthy gym habit also boosts your performance below the belt. Not only are men with a 42-inch waist 50% more likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction than those with a 32-inch waist; men who are active for 30 minutes per day are 41% less likely to go limp than the average couch potato. 

How much exercise do you need to reap these health benefits?

The answer to how much exercise you need depends partly on what you’re after. Burning about 1,000 extra calories a week in activities is likely to extend your life. Walking half an hour most days of the week is all you need to significantly lower your risk of colon cancer and diabetes. But the more physical activities you can weave into your daily life, the healthier you’ll be.  “The more you do, the more you benefit.”