By Jeff Harrison

PHC Director of Personal Training

In all of my years as a personal trainer, I have never come across one good, bonafide reason why to not exercise.  Quite the contrary, there are literally thousands of reasons why everyone should exercise.  However, it is our individual concepts and expectations of exercise that get convoluted and generally lead to a life void of or little exercise. We want the magic pill; we want the immediate solution.  The good news: we have it and we’ve had it all along.  It’s called exercise.

Exercise Keeps You Younger

According to a study from King’s College London in the Archives of Internal Medicine, exercise can indeed keep you younger.  While it’s inevitable that someday we will all pass on from this life, exercise has a profound effect on not only the quality of years of our life, but on the quality of life to our years.  The study examined 2,401 twins and found that a sedentary lifestyle raises the risk of a range of health problems from heart disease to cancer and plays a key role in the aging process.  The aging process, specifically the rate of aging, was found to be most affected the length of telomeres.

 What Are Telomerers?

Telomeres are cellular structures which protect DNA on the chromosomes. As we age in chronological years, these telomeres get shorter in length, thus suggesting the cells are dying or aging.  The study saw that the twins who exercised more each week had longer telomeres and were biologically 9 years younger as compared to their genetic twins who were more sedentary .  The study concluded that cellular aging or death is largely determined by the length of telomeres, which exercise has a positive effect.

Your Fountain of Youth

Despite the myth,Ponce de Leon can’t take credit for finding it.  Exercise is the Fountain of Youth and it has always been a part of what we are as humans.  We were not designed to sit; we were designed to move. If you’re having trouble getting motivated or need some fresh workout ideas, meet up with a personal trainer; step out of your comfort zone and try an exercise class.  Whatever it is, get yourself moving and see why exercise IS your PerfectFit.