Exercise as Housecleaning for the Body
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/exercise-as-housecleaning-for-the-body/
For those of you still not convinced that exercise is a miracle drug that is not only free of any intellectual property constraints but is basically costless for nearly everyone, here is yet another example. Sure, it is in mice and yes sometime the information gleaned from mice studies doesn’t transfer to humans, but dammit, that isn’t an excuse to simply ignore it because you are too lazy to get up and move around.
So get out there and move your butt around! ANYTHING is better than nothing, but the generally acceptable minimum is 30 minutes a day where the effort you put in means you would have difficulty keeping up a conversation. A brisk walk does that, and if you get to the point where the brisk walk isn’t enough, throw in a slow jog! If your joints give you problems, find a local pool and do some swimming or take up bike riding. As a by the by, don’t put on sunscreen unless you are going to be out in the summer, noon-day sun for longer than 30 minutes, you need that vitamin-D that the sun’s ultraviolet produces and getting it nature’s way is better than through supplements.
Don’t obsess about being a lard-ass and use that as an excuse to avoid exercise. Believe it or not, there is quite a bit of accumulating evidence that you can be a fat-ass and still be healthy in most other respects (meaning you can avoid diabetes, heart disease, etc.). You will probably actually live longer if you are a bit on the heavy side, presuming you exercise like I am telling you, because studies of old people who get sick have shown that people with the pounds packed on tend to survive longer and have better outcomes than their skinny counter parts, so be happy with your Dunlap’s Disease and just get out there and start walking!
If you ain’t a fat-ass like me, you are not off the hook, because unless you are exercising regularly you are still likely to have metabolic syndrome which means you are going to die younger than necessary and likely unhappier.
You don’t have to run a triathlon to get the benefits, so stop making excuses!
