How Exercise Affects Your Cholesterol levels
Everyone already knows that exercise is an important
part of a healthy lifestyle even if certain people
choose not to exercise at all. The fact that only
around 10% of American adults exercise at least
three times a week however may indicate that many
people are not aware of just how beneficial exercise
really can be. Well, consider this fact:An estimated
99.9 million American adults have total blood
cholesterol values of 200 mg/dl (milligrams per
deciliter) and higher, and of these about 34.5
million American adults have levels of 240 or
above.
In adults, total cholesterol levels of
240 mg/dl or higher are considered high risk.
Levels from 200 to 239 mg/dl are considered borderline-high
risk.So then, what does this have to do with supporting
a case to make exercise a priority? I mean how
can exercise help with cholesterol levels anyway?
Isn't high cholesterol only controllable by diet
and medication?
Let's review the following:In a study reported
in the "Journal of the American Medical Association"
in 1989, 13,000 men and women were studied for
eight years. Risk factors for death from all diseases
were studied and this was the conclusion:The data
showed that an unfit man could reduce his risk
of death from all diseases by some 37% and an
unfit woman could reduce her risk by around 48%.
The summary was that exercise not only lowered
cholesterol levels significantly but also lowered
the risk of death from heart disease as well as
from all diseases. Another study conducted by the
"Centers for Disease Control" in 1989 concluded
that people who do not exercise have twice the
risk of developing heart disease than those who
do exercise.One study done at the University of
California showed that married men aged 35 to
65 who started a regular exercise program had
more sexual intercourse with their wives and had
more orgasms than those who did not exercise.
)Cholesterol is just another type of fat in your
body. Since exercise helps to burn up fat in your
body, this fat is also burned up as well during
exercise. As a result of this, your cholesterol
levels are reduced through exercise. But what
kind of exercise is best for this? The long and
short answer is; any kind of exercise! Even walking
regularly has been shown to reduce cholesterol
levels. Of course limiting your intake of fatty
cuts of meat and sticking to low-fat or even better,
fat-free dairy products helps too. Also, eating
plenty of fruits and vegetables, particularly
high fiber ones, coupled with a moderate exercise
program will surly help you win the battle against
high cholesterol.About The Author:Jim O'Neill
gives you tons of valuable information on the
subjects of weight loss, fitness, and nutrition
to make it easy for you to live a healthy lifestyle.
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