How regular exercise benefits teens

YOU keep your skin clean. You condition your hair. You are eating right. You are doing all you can to look and feel great. But are you missing out on an important part of a healthier lifestyle? No matter what your age or shape, you should exercise daily. Not only does exercise to tone your body so you can wear your favourite jeans. Exercise also strengthens your muscles, keeps your bones strong and improves your skin.

And there are more benefits of exercise — increased relaxation, better sleep and mood, strong immune function, and more. Let's look at some of the incredible benefits of exercise then talk about how you can get started.

Exercise and your weight

Because exercise helps to use up oxygen, it causes your body to burn stored fat and helps you maintain a normal weight.

For instance, if you walk 6,5km a day, four times a week, you can burn about 1 600 calories a week. If you don’t change your diet at all and keep walking the same distance over six months, you will lose about 5,4kg. Walk the same distance for a year and you will drop 10kg.

The neat thing about exercise is you don’t have to do it all at one time. After all, not many teens have time to walk 6,5km after school. But you can do that in short bursts throughout your day. Here is an idea of how to work that much exercise into your daily routine:

Take a 2km walk on a treadmill before school. Then, take a 2km walk around the track during school lunch period.

Take a 2km walk after school with friends or the family dog.

Take a 2km walk on the treadmill while watching your favourite show before dinner.

If you stay with the walking programme, you will see benefits with: Weight loss

Muscle strengthening and definition

Stronger bones

A lower heart rate

Better mood

An improved complexion

Exercise and your muscles

Most people know that exercise keeps muscles strong. But did you know that strong muscles burn more calories? Muscle mass is metabolically active tissue.

In other words, the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn even when you are not working out.

Studies estimate that for each pound of muscle you add to your body, you will burn an additional 3550 calories per day. So an extra 2,5kg of muscle will burn about 175-250 calories a day — or an extra pound of fat every 14-20 days.