LIVING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE
Group Essay
To reduce health issues such as diabetes, high cholesterol, and obesity, people
need to exercise and maintain a diet enforced by personal lifestyle changes. Being active
and exercising helps people become healthy and maintain a health lifestyle. Exercising
also makes people feel better, and it reduces age-related problems with their bodies.
However, people have a myriad of excuses not to exercise: it is too difficult to do or
learn, it requires too much time, it requires equipment, it requires a gym membership, and
the list goes on. Any form of exercise requires some effort, especially a bit of knowledge
and skill to prevent injury. Some common exercises that are easily included in a new
exercise routine that also address some of the most common excuses are running, weight
lifting, and swimming.
One of the most popular forms of exercise is running because it is one of the
easiest activities to start. It can be as easy as stepping outside one’s front door. Running
can be done at any time of the day and on any safe surface without any type of
equipment. Some of the benefits of running include weight loss, an increase in one’s
metabolism, lower cholesterol, and strengthening the bones, all of which lead to a
stronger immune system. Some people run for recreation while others run for sport.
Despite what motivates someone to run, it is important to do it safely. One purchase that
is necessary to prevent injuries is a shoe with adequate support. The other safety tip does
not require money but requires attention to posture. Many people make the mistake of
keeping their shoulders and chin up while running when the best posture is to run upright.
The speed one runs and the stride one takes can vary while still being beneficial.
Running speeds range from jogging to sprinting.
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Jogging is moving in a slow,
continuous path while sprinting is a full-speed run. As a runner increases his/her strength
and comfort, he/she can improve by paying attention to his/her stride and timing. Stride
is the length from step to step while running. It is common knowledge that beginning
runners usually do not have a long stride or manage a high number of strides per minute.
Another easy and important form of exercise is weightlifting. Many people use
this activity to increase muscle strength and develop body mass. Many people think
weightlifting always builds bulk, but fail to realize that adding weightlifting exercises to a
routine workout helps build bone density, which helps prevent broken bones as people
age. One can also target muscles that may need strength to prevent pain in areas such as
the knees. Weightlifting first became important to strengthen athletes in other sports, but
it became more common when it was added to the Olympic Games, where both men and
women compete. Many of the same weightlifting events seen in Olympics can be used
by almost anyone. To get started in weightlifting, it is smart to learn the proper technique
from a trainer to prevent injuries, which may involve a short-term cost. Weights may
also be purchased, but normal household goods such as cans of food may be used in place
of store-bought weights. The everyday athlete typically wants to build strength without
bulk by using lighter weights and more repetitions while competing weightlifters use
more weight and few repetitions. Just two days a week of weightlifting can provide a
lifetime of benefits.
Swimming is a sport that many people find enjoyable because when most people
think of water, they think of “fun.” That may be enough to get someone motivated to
start swimming. Usually, the biggest obstacle is finding a place to swim. Many cities
have city pools, and many schools open their pools to the public during designated hours.
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Doing a little research may result in discovering a place to swim close to home and with
little or no cost. Swimming is an extremely effective form of exercise because it is a fullbody workout without muscle strain. The buoyancy in the water makes swimming the
best exercise for people with joint pain. Furthermore, people do not even have to know
how to swim because many pools provide water aerobics classes that provide equipment
to keep the exerciser afloat. For those who want to exercise in the water the traditional
way, swimming has many different types of strokes such as freestyle, breaststroke,
backstroke, and the butterfly. All swimmers must pay attention to breathing, trying to
breathe as little as possible when racing, but beginners should breathe normally.
Regardless of what type of exercise and diet a person chooses, he/she must
persevere to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Exercise is a major component when it comes
to staying fit and in shape. Starting a healthy routine at a young age makes it easier to
maintain a healthy lifestyle as people age. This also reduces health issues that are
associated with aging. People who suffer from health issues due to weight and unhealthy
food choices should find a way to fit in a daily exercise routine in their life by choosing
one or more of the exercises above. By following simple and consistent health routines,
people can lead a better quality of life, which is what most people strive for as they grow
older.
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