Professor Stefan dalishaw is the director of the Institute for applied prevention of Bremen accident clinic and rehabilitation center and teaches at the University of Bremen. The most important advice he gives you is: exercise 20 minutes a day! Here, the sports scientist reveals what else you can do to stay healthy for a long time:
1. Exercise can improve the quality of life
People who exercise regularly feel better. Physical exercise can improve the quality of life. Reason: exercise has an overall impact on both body and mind. As research shows, this applies to all ages. Scientists at Bayreuth university can prove that exercise can improve young people’s self-esteem. Even in old age, exercise can ensure a high quality of life, including more mobility and flexibility. Last but not least, active people also have longer life expectancy – as British researchers have been able to prove.
2. Exercise prevents many diseases
A famous saying illustrates how important exercise is to our health: “if there is a drug that has so many benefits and no side effects – like exercise – it is priceless.” This is true: especially endurance sports and strength training have many positive effects. They can prevent disease, reduce or even cure existing discomfort. The most important thing is that this “drug” costs no money and is suitable for everyone. In specific disease situations, you should work with your doctor to find the right training.
3. It’s best to do 20 minutes of exercise every day
Exercise 20 minutes a day – this is the recommended guideline. That sounds a lot, but that’s not the case. Because some daily activities, such as climbing stairs or cycling, are also sports. If you still can’t do it every day, you can do 30 minutes of exercise three times a week, or 45 minutes of exercise twice a week. However, if you have a feeling about yourself, which dose is best for you. You can use these values as a base note, then adjust your training – reduce or expand it.
4. Exercise can reduce stress
Whether at work, at home or at home – each of US experiences stress. What is the easiest way to get rid of him? Athletic! Because exercise helps regulate the autonomic nervous system. When you feel stressed, the sympathetic nervous system responsible for stress dominates, and the body closes the parasympathetic nervous system responsible for relaxation. If the sympathetic nervous system is permanently activated, you can’t calm down and may even feel tired. Therefore, it is particularly important for the two opponents to keep a balance. This is most suitable for routine endurance sports.
5. If you don’t change your eating habits, you can’t lose a lot of weight through exercise
If you want to lose weight successfully, you need to change your eating habits. Because if you only exercise but continue to eat as before, you can only expect small results. Although you burn more calories through sports than sitting on the sofa, it’s not enough, especially for obese people. By contrast: jogging for 30 minutes burns about 230 calories – just the equivalent of an apple pie. In the long run, only a combination of regular exercise and a balanced diet will help.
6. Walk at least 2000 steps a day
Get enough exercise – walk at least 2000 steps a day. You can easily check this with a pedometer. These are no longer so expensive and can sometimes be purchased from discount stores. If it turns out that you don’t exercise enough, here are some tips for becoming more active in your daily life: take stairs instead of elevators, ride a short bike instead of driving, and walk to Baker on weekends to buy bread.
7. You’ll never be too old to exercise
Whether you’re 45, 65 or 85 – you’re never too old to exercise regularly! But you must adjust the dose according to your age. This almost always means that training should be milder than when you were young. My advice: go swimming, take gymnastics classes or ride a bike. Important: if you don’t exercise for a long time or are over 40 years old, you should definitely have a physical examination before starting exercise. This includes stress electrocardiograms and blood and urine tests. Talk to your doctor about your previous illness. In this way, he can safely evaluate which sport is best for you.
8. In order to maintain your lung function, you should be out of breath every day
Even if it sounds tired: try panting at least once a day – whether it’s climbing stairs, running short distances, or skipping rope at home for two minutes at night. These short-term loads train your lung function. This determines how much oxygen you inhale and how much carbon dioxide you release when you exhale. An important factor in exercise – because the better your lungs work, the more effective your muscles work.
9. Leisure athletes do not need additional sports nutrition
Compared with professional athletes, leisure and leisure athletes do not need any special additional nutrition. Special drinks or so-called fitness bars are redundant. If you eat a balanced diet and drink enough water, it’s enough. Depending on the type of exercise and the duration of training, this may be 1-2 liters more than usual. My advice for long-term exercise, such as a marathon for everyone or a long hike: eat a banana in the middle and drink a glass of Apple soda. This gives you energy without putting pressure on your body.
10. There is a link between movement and mental power
Current research shows that exercise has a significant impact not only on muscles, lungs and cardiovascular system, but also on our brain. Because endurance exercise promotes the growth of certain brain regions, such as the hippocampus or cerebral cortex. This is where our working memory is. The hope of researchers is to better process information through exercise and make decisions faster.
Interview: Catherine bogding