What percent of Americans do not exercise?
A health report conducted by the CDC revealed more than 60% of Americans do not engage in the recommended amount of physical activity, and 25% are inactive. If you’re looking to improve yourself, regularly exercising is a habit you should consider adopting.
After all, America is one of the most obese and diabetic countries in the world. This disappointing number isn’t caused by those who don’t know how to exercise; it’s caused by those who don’t understand the importance of exercising.
Here are the top ten reasons why you should engage in some form of exercise every day:
1. Fewer health problems = happier life
One of the obvious benefits of exercise is a lower risk of health complications. Here are some risks of illness that decrease when we start exercising:
- Type 2 diabetes
- Some forms of cancers
- Dementia
- Fewer heart attacks
An exercise routine, whether a 30-minute walk or a 10-minute job, tremendously improves our health. However, reaping the benefits of exercise takes place when we do it consistently. Exercise has been proven to increase happiness because of the confidence we gain in ourselves.
2. Discipline, hard work, and patience
Going to the gym or finding time to exercise consistently requires discipline, not motivation. There are days when you would much rather sleep in than work out; these are the most crucial days of your fitness journey. Exercising when you don’t want to teaches you to persevere and be patient, as you won’t always see immediate results.
Regular exercise builds these formidable character traits, which will carry on with you throughout a lifetime. You become more likely to be successful in other areas because of the discipline you develop.
3. You become more self-loving
The only person who should love you for who you are is yourself. As humans, we frequently judge ourselves in a negative light when things don’t go our way or when we’ve made a mistake.
Going to the gym and exercising, even for 15 minutes, will always be a proud achievement. Waking up, looking at ourselves in the mirror, and admiring our progress in becoming our current in-shape selves is another way we naturally develop self-love.
After every workout, compliment yourself for pushing through a long and gruesome workout. These small acts carry a heavier weight than they appear.
4. Increase in productivity
There’s a reason why every happy and successful person exercises consistently. Completing a workout is a huge accomplishment and serves as the fuel to propel you throughout the day.
After completing a workout, especially early in the morning, you feel accomplished, making you hungry for more accomplishments. This chain of achievements keeps you productive and disciplined to get more work done throughout your day.
5. You become a role model
We all admire a hard worker, so why don’t you become a hard worker yourself? Being a friend or family member in shape may inspire them to start working out. They’ll start looking up to you because of your healthy habits and self-transformation.
If you plan on going to the gym for the first day but are unsure of what to do, check out our free beginner’s workout guide here.
6. People respect you more
There’s a reason why muscles have always been a symbol of hard work; those with muscles are hard workers because of their willingness to push through pain. Muscle growth takes time and effort; we all know that, and the ones best at it are hard workers.
It’s an ugly truth, but those who are overweight or underweight are more likely to feel disrespected due to our innate human behavior to judge. Instead of discouraging this fact, use it to fuel your fitness journey so you can gain respect from yourself.
7. Moving around becomes easier
When you’re in shape, you’ll notice a tremendous difference in how you feel and how much physical activity you can handle. Walking up a hill, walking up three flights of stairs, or running to work because you’re late becomes more manageable.
The comparison between how much physical activity you can handle previously compared to now is a huge accomplishment you shouldn’t take for granted. Continue to use that to fuel your desire to become stronger physically and mentally.
8. You save more money
When you start exercising and getting into shape, you tend to eat healthier. Instead of going for fast food, you look for recipes to cook at home, saving you an enormous amount of money when you compare how often you eat fast food.
Additionally, exercising will promote money-saving habits because our money will be spent on healthy foods at the grocery store rather than expensive restaurants. We’re able to cook more meals with our groceries than the meals we buy at restaurants.
