Physical activity
Published by Bupa's health information team, July 2009.
Keeping physically active can prevent major illnesses and is the basis for a healthier lifestyle. Physical activity can halve your risk of developing many major illnesses and substantially reduce the risk of premature death.
Evidence shows that regular exercise can:
- halve your chance of developing coronary heart disease
- promote bone density to protect against osteoporosis
- reduce the overall risk of cancer
Click here for further details
What the experts say
Experts have long recommended cross training (practicing different active skills or pursuits) as one of the best solutions to the challenges of boredom, plateauing and overuse injuries. And moving to the great outdoors can be a particularly good way of diversifying your program while also building in some changes of scenery.
There are some very real psychological and physiological benefits to balancing your exercise routine with building in some outdoor exercise. To start, moving from indoor to outdoor environments can help you expand and custom tailor your athletic experience based on your changing moods and needs, so you get more satisfaction out of your fitness regime over time.
Research shows that the rejuvenation you feel after an outdoor workout is not just in your Imagination. Exposure to the elements and outdoor scenery can have a marked, positive effect on your mental, emotional and physical state. Another major benefit to outdoor training is that it tends to be more engaging and mentally stimulating due to the changing scenery and terrain — not to mention the mood boost that comes from being outside in the sunshine or indeed the rain.
Furthermore, many outdoor activities involve higher levels of weight-bearing activity, which improves bone density by stimulating greater bone development. Recent studies have focused on the negative ions (for that positive feeling!) present in outdoor environments, created when air molecules come in contact with sunlight, radiation, and moving air and water These tiny electrically charged particles have been found to generate feelings of alertness, mental clarity and elevated mood.
Artificially produced negative air ions significantly benefit both seasonal and non-seasonal depression. Naturally occurring negative ions are found in the greatest concentrations in the mountains, near the crashing ocean surf and in the clean air after a thunderstorm. Many outdoor activities are also terrific ways to improve your proprioception (your sense of balance and where your body is in space).
In the outdoors, you need to watch for and accommodate all sorts of obstacles — tree roots, potholes, puddles and the like. The adjustments your body must make on changing terrain engage core and skeletal muscles that aren’t as active when the turf doesn’t vary.
Most outdoor workouts have the built-in appeal of a destination, weather you're doing an Out-and- back run or biking a mountain-trail loop, physically proceeding along a route and Gauging your progress toward a bona fide place offers some folks a sense of satisfaction and Motivation they just can’t seem to get from the progress bars or time-elapsed readout on Equipment monitors.
To sum up, a strategically and intuitively balanced outdoor workout program can be the most direct route to your fitness goals and it can significantly deepen your fitness satisfaction. So take a leisurely run on a riverside trail, infusing your body with mood boosting negative ions that leave you feeling ready for anything.