Full disclosure: We still believe in a balanced diet around here and that health begins on one’s plate. But it seems exercise is way more important than we thought. “Exercise affects every single system of the body. It’s not just your muscles and your cardiovascular system,” Marx de Salcedo declares on this episode of the mindbodygreen podcast. Her book includes a great deal of data and research on how exercise benefits various bodily functions. Below, discover a snapshot of her findings: “People have this idea that when you have this special diet, these molecules just go right into your cells and do something wonderful,” says Marx de Salcedo. “That’s kind of a misconception. You can take in whatever kind of molecules you want, but nothing’s going to happen in those cells with those molecules unless you exercise.” You see, when you perform workouts that challenge you, your muscles are briefly starved for oxygen (hypoxia), which stimulates the production of mitochondria1. “The mitochondria have to work at a much higher rate than they do when you’re just sitting around,” explains Marx de Salcedo. “The mitochondria are producing energy at a rate that is [up to] 50 to 100 times faster. Everything’s just vastly speeded up.” This is especially important as you get older since you tend to lose mitochondria with age. That’s why experts encourage stimulating mitochondrial health to enhance longevity. In one randomized controlled trial2, one group of adults was assigned to remain sedentary after their meal (think watching television on the couch), while another group opted for an active post-dinner activity. The results showed that those who moved their body within an hour of eating, even at low intensity and for only 10 minutes, helped manage their blood glucose levels. But even if you can’t sneak in a post-dinner stroll, simply moving at any point of the day comes with impressive metabolic benefits. “Once you exercise, it increases your metabolism, and all those effects are lasting,” says Marx de Salcedo. “They trail off over the next 24 hours. So if you exercise every day, your body is in this constantly revved-up state.” What’s more, your heart rate increases during exercise, which means your body pumps more oxygen to your brain; and multiple studies3 have found that a well-oxygenated brain helps manage anxiety and depression4. We could go on and on about how regular movement balances your mood, but we’ll let Marx de Salcedo summarize: “Exercise is just so important for mental health,” she says. If you can’t commit to an everyday workout routine, that’s OK—just try to get some sort of movement in any way you can. “The cool thing about exercise is the very first time you do it, you’re going to have a good impact on your body,” she adds.
