5 Benefits of Running For Your Body

running on the beach

We all keep hearing that running is meant to be SO good for us, but is it? How good can it be? We do it in school and then as adults we tend to slack on it a bit. But, was it that good for us when we were kids? 

It turns out that running may be part of the key to staying healthy. Exercise in general can extend your life by some years. Some people run for pleasure, others to help cope with stressful situations, but many also do it for health benefits. 

Perhaps you are trying to figure out how to start running, or are just looking for the health-based motivation to get you off of the couch and into your jogging shorts. Whatever the case, let us talk you through the benefits! 

#1. Running Stimulates Bone Formation

When we run the stress that the motion puts on our bones increases as we are repetitively loading them. 

If we train properly and plan our runs, we can avoid overload, this means that our bones get to adapt to the stress and will get stronger as a result. Having a good running technique, and planning proper recovery is critical to ensuring that your bones survive your workouts and your bones are healthy. 

As you age, adapting to this kind of stress can help you to prevent conditions such as osteoporosis and bone loss! 

#2. Strengthens Your Heart

The demands that running regularly comes with affect your whole body and will increase your heart rate. Your heart has to pump faster and stronger to keep up with the intensity of running as an activity. 

Therefore, having a fitter and stronger heart can prevent cardiac strain when you are active or when you are resting. Having a stronger heart can also improve the circulation of blood throughout your system, thus lowering the risk of high blood pressure. 

#3. Boosts Metabolism & Energy

So many of us go for a run and feel more energized and alert once we have gone for a run, especially after we have made it a habit. Yet, the primary benefits are in the long-term effects. You can find that your circulatory system is functioning better, and your lung capacity has improved. It will make you fitter for everyday tasks! 

We all burn fat and calories differently but running can be a good way to help stimulate the excess fat in your body to start burning off. 

Dog running

Low-intensity and high-intensity running will have unique benefits for losing fat. So, if you want to lose weight, you can look into your body type and find out which type is going to work best for you! 

Most people who say running won’t help in weight loss, simply tried the wrong type of running for them! 

#4. Lowers Your Cholesterol Levels

In our bodies we have two types of cholesterol carriers, there is the good or HDL cholesterol carriers, and the bad or LDL cholesterol carriers. Research tends to show that doing moderate-intensity workouts will be useful in increasing HDL. 

Running at a moderate intensity can increase the good cholesterol in our bodies. This, can, in effect, reduce the risk of stroke, heart attack, and even coronary artery disease. 

However, if you have beef with LDL cholesterol in your body, then to directly reduce this you will need to pick an exercise that is considered to be high-intensity, as only high-intensity workouts tend to reduce LDL cholesterol levels in the body.

#5. Reduces Blood Sugar

We use a lot of energy to support our muscles during any workout, especially running, as we use so many muscles at once. The glucose (sugar) in our blood will be used to help fuel or run. Therefore, going for a run, or indeed doing any exercise can help to lower your blood sugar levels.

Studies show that running regularly can help to increase our insulin sensitivity, thus preventing diabetes. 

How does this work? Well, when you happen to be more sensitive to insulin, your metabolism will work better at keeping blood sugar levels in a healthier range. So, running can help manage blood sugar levels! 

Overall 

Who ever knew that running would be so good for your health? It turns out that a quick jog could be much better for you than you thought! Give it a try, and see how it benefits you, and if you have some beautiful locations around you, you may discover something new while getting healthier!