1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:03,600 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff from how Stuff Works dot com 2 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:14,640 Speaker 1: where smart happens. H I am Marshall Brain with today's question, 3 00:00:15,000 --> 00:00:18,720 Speaker 1: how important is exercise? And I know what you're thinking. 4 00:00:18,760 --> 00:00:21,599 Speaker 1: You're thinking, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know about exercise. It's 5 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,200 Speaker 1: like smoking, you aren't supposed to smoke. And it's like 6 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:27,440 Speaker 1: being obese, you aren't supposed to gain weight. You're supposed 7 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:32,120 Speaker 1: to exercise. But why what effects do exercise actually have? 8 00:00:32,760 --> 00:00:36,199 Speaker 1: And a recent study looks at this and discovers that 9 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:41,400 Speaker 1: exercise is incredibly important to health. It points out that 10 00:00:41,760 --> 00:00:51,479 Speaker 1: people who exercise decrease the risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, dementia, depression, obesity, 11 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: type two diabetes, and high blood pressure, among other things. 12 00:00:56,040 --> 00:00:58,240 Speaker 1: If you go to Science Daily and look at their 13 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: article on this particular study, it says people who take 14 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:06,959 Speaker 1: regular exercise could reduce their risk of developing around two 15 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:12,320 Speaker 1: dozen physical and mental health conditions, including some cancers and dementia, 16 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:17,360 Speaker 1: and slow down how quickly their body deteriorates as they age, 17 00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 1: which sounds pretty good. You know, if you think about it, 18 00:01:20,280 --> 00:01:22,480 Speaker 1: you go out and you do a little exercise and 19 00:01:22,560 --> 00:01:25,840 Speaker 1: you can reduce the risk of all these different things, 20 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: plus help yourself to live longer. There's a lot to 21 00:01:28,800 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 1: like about that. So the obvious next question is how 22 00:01:33,280 --> 00:01:36,160 Speaker 1: much exercise are you supposed to get if you want 23 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:39,280 Speaker 1: to take advantage of all of these great benefits. So 24 00:01:39,360 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 1: you go over to the American Heart Association website and 25 00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:44,800 Speaker 1: you can find out the answer to that question. You're 26 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: supposed to try to get at least a hundred and 27 00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:52,680 Speaker 1: fifty minutes of moderate exercise per week, and moderate exercise 28 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:56,640 Speaker 1: usually translates into something like walking, or it could be 29 00:01:56,680 --> 00:02:00,200 Speaker 1: bike riding or jogging if you want to put out 30 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 1: some extra effort. But walking is enough, and they'd like 31 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 1: you to be doing more than that. But a hundred 32 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:10,160 Speaker 1: and fifty minutes a week is the minimum. And a 33 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:13,520 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty minutes a week of walking translates into 34 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: taking a half hour walk five days a week, which 35 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: really doesn't sound that bad. So you're gonna go out 36 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: every day and you're gonna walk for half an hour, 37 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:25,359 Speaker 1: and that's gonna be about a mile and a half 38 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:28,160 Speaker 1: or two miles if you walk at a really brisk pace. 39 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:30,680 Speaker 1: If you want to do more, that's even better. The 40 00:02:30,800 --> 00:02:33,639 Speaker 1: American Heart Association would love for you to do some 41 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:37,200 Speaker 1: weightlifting of some sort, and they'd be ecstatic if you 42 00:02:37,240 --> 00:02:40,560 Speaker 1: did some cardios stuff as well, something that causes you 43 00:02:40,600 --> 00:02:43,040 Speaker 1: to work up a sweat and to breathe deeply. But 44 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: if you don't want to do that stuff, it's fine. 45 00:02:45,639 --> 00:02:50,120 Speaker 1: Just the walking can have an amazing beneficial effect on 46 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:54,200 Speaker 1: your health. As you know that list of things cancer, 47 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:57,760 Speaker 1: heart disease, stroke, dementia. Getting rid of those kinds of 48 00:02:57,800 --> 00:03:00,560 Speaker 1: things with a simple walk every day it sounds like 49 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 1: a pretty good deal. For more on this and thousands 50 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:07,359 Speaker 1: of other topics, esit how stuff works dot com, and 51 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:09,360 Speaker 1: don't forget to check out the brain stuff blog on 52 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:11,600 Speaker 1: the how stuff Works dot com home page. 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