You always hear people say, "You need to exercise regularly to maintain your health", but just how much does exercise really do for your health overall? Are the health benefits of exercise really worth the effort it takes to exercise regularly? Can't you just eat better and still maintain your health in the same manner? Can anyone tell me what the real health benefits of exercise are or is it all just speculation based on hearsay? Well here are some really good reasons for making exercise part of your healthy lifestyle.

Americans spend more than $600 billion dollars per year for health care. That equals almost $3,000 for every single person in the whole population of the country. Sadly, this financial commitment has shown no signs of decrease. Nor has it produced fully acceptable results with regard to treating a wide variety of chronic health problems.

Attempts have been made to identify the factors which have been major contributors in the epidemic of medical problems our society faces today. A number of probable reasons for why so many people are so seemingly unhealthy have been named as; poor eating habits, a sedentary lifestyle, stress and poor health habits (i.e. smoking).

At the same time, studies have been done to see what can be done to lower either the number or the severity of the medical problems affecting the public. These studies have shown some convincing evidence that exercise has substantial medical benefits for people of all ages.

Two of the most publicized efforts to investigate the possible link between exercise and disease were longitudinal studies, each of which used more than 10,000 subjects. Some years ago, in a study of 17,000 Harvard graduates, Ralph Paffenbarger, M.D., found that men who expended 300 calories per day, the equivalent of walking briskly for 45 minutes, reduced their death rates from all causes by 28% and lived an average of two years longer than their sedentary former classmates.

A more recent study conducted by Steven Blair, P.E.D., of the institute of aerobics research in Dallas documented the fact that a relatively moderate amount of exercise has a significant effect on the mortality rate of both men and women. The data was adjusted for age differences between subjects in an eight year study of 13,344 individuals and the conclusion was that the higher the fitness level, the lower the death rate. An analysis of the data yielded by both studies suggests one conclusion