8 reasons why a student should take up sports
You probably have friends who participate in marathons, run triathlons, work out at the gym, or ride bikes on the weekends. Amateur sports and healthy lifestyles have become trendy in recent years. So maybe you should join amateur athletes. We’ve compiled eight reasons why you should enlist the support of a friend and start working out with them. A friend’s support gives you extra motivation.
It’s never too late to start, but sometimes it’s hard. Are you pressured by insecurity and a lack of extra motivation to exercise? Start working out with your husband or wife, a friend or colleague who already works out.
An experiment conducted in 2015 and published in PLoS One proved that exercising together motivates you to exercise more and better than exercising on your own. Also, spending time with friends while exercising can increase the positive effects of exercise, so you’ll be more enthusiastic about your next workout.
Working out together makes friendships stronger
The same 2015 experiment also proved the opposite effect – exercising together improves social connections between people. When you work out in a group, such as a new running club, it’s much easier to make new social connections.
Another study published in 2015 in the Scandinavian Journal of Public Health found that group exercise improves the atmosphere in the workplace, so working out together can be used as a team-building tool.
Exercise improves mood
A 2019 review published in the Journal of Happiness Research found a link between physical activity and a good mood. Just one 10-minute workout a week can contribute to a rush of positive emotions.
Researchers noted that exercise has a positive impact on health and social interactions. Studies with seniors and cancer survivors have shown that both aerobic exercise and stretching classes are effective if a person needs an additional source of high spirits.
So, if you have an elderly relative or acquaintance who has recovered from a serious illness, offer them a joint exercise, yoga, or outdoor walk. This will add happiness to his life and improve his mood. It will also be useful for students who often experience stress related to studies, so if you do not know who can write my essay for me then doing sports can be a kind of unloading at such a time.
Sports work as an antidepressant
The weekend is over and it’s time to go to school? Hate Monday morning with all your heart? Try starting the week with a jog. Running speeds up the formation of new nerve cells in the brain, so it may be useful as an antidepressant.
A study published in the journal Physiology and Behavior found that exercise stimulates the reward system in the human brain. These are several brain structures connected by nerve cells that regulate behavior through positive reactions to events or actions. When you do something pleasing to yourself, the brain remembers the positive response. Next time you don’t have to talk yourself into going for a run or going to the gym.
Exercise reduces stress
A 2016 study published in the journal Experimental Brain Research found that aerobic exercise lasting just over 60 minutes reduces activity in the frontal lobe of the brain. This helps relieve anxiety, stress, and bad thoughts.
After an hour of running, a person begins to feel more relaxed, with no effect on his or her cognitive abilities, even if he or she continues to run. So if you want to take the edge off after a hard day at work, join a local club or a running friend for an evening run. It’s always easier and more fun to run together.
Exercise improves cognitive function
As we age, some people experience cognitive decline – memory, concentration, and reaction speed deteriorate. Research shows that exercise improves thinking processes and performance.
Exercise has been shown to help people over the age of 55 improve their reaction and decision-making speed, as well as memory performance. If you live with an elderly relative, it’s a good time to start exercising. Take your time, get into an exercise regimen gradually and build up your workload slowly.
Exercise helps to fight cardiovascular disease
Moderate physical activity has long been considered by doctors as a tool in the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Medical associations recommend at least 150 minutes per week of moderate aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of high-intensity exercise.
If you have blood pressure problems, such as hypertension, aerobic exercise can be a non-medicinal treatment. A 2017 review published in the journal Medicine found that regular aerobic exercise (running, swimming, cycling, cross-country skiing) can lower blood pressure for people with hypertension.
Exercise improves self-esteem
A study at the University of Florida found that exercising improves self-esteem and body perception. Even if a person hasn’t yet reached their goals in sports, they still feel much better about themselves than someone who doesn’t exercise.
According to one of the study’s authors, sports physiologist Heather Hausenblas, in recent years more and more people have begun to complain about their physical shape – people don’t like the way they look. But instead of exercise and sports, they choose diets, expensive medications, and cosmetic procedures.
But just start exercising regularly, and your self-esteem will go up. Do not necessarily chase sports victories or ideals from magazines. Start running together with a friend in the morning, sign up for group training in a fitness club or make joint Sunday walks on skis or bikes. The results will come with time, and the positive emotions will come with the first workout.