Exercise: Less weight, Less stress

Reflection/Reaction Piece

In today's society, exercise seems to be at the bottom of our to-do list of priorities. As college students, there are many different barriers to exercise such as lack of time, lack of motivation, and lack of self-efficacy. The benefits that exercise gives us has been well pushed aside by choosing not to engage in physical activity. With cardiovascular disease being the leading cause of death in the U.S. and obesity not far behind, this is proof that exercise has significantly declined in our population. Because of the decrease in physical activity, a threat is being posed on our public health in the United States leading to increased incidences of diseases, depression, anxiety, stress, and many other factors.

As previously discussed in class, exercise provides many benefits that improve our quality of life such as decreasing stress, weight loss or maintenance, improving sleep, declining risks for certain diseases such as stroke, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes; improving mood, decreasing depression and anxiety; and overall increasing muscle mass and strength. The list of benefits of exercise goes on and on yet there are many of us who don't find it important enough to incorporate it into our daily lives. From being an athlete in high school, I have realized the importance exercise has on my life and make an effort to continue to engage in a workout routine. By engaging in physical activity, I have more energy, less stress, and feel healthier overall. Exercise is important to me because of the benefits associated with it, and because I feel very accomplished after doing so.

 It is true that we run on a busy schedule on a day to day basis but there is always time to engage in physical activity whether it's doing 30 crunches during every commercial break during your favorite show, taking the stairs rather than the elevator, jogging for 30 minutes after class, or playing basketball with friends. There is always room for exercise, we just have to be willing to make it a priority in our hectic lives. As college students, it is important for us to start incorporating exercise into our lives now because once we get older it will be harder to motivate ourselves to start. By exercising at an early age, you figure out what types of physical activity you enjoy best and are more likely to continue on that pathway when you get older. For example, I may enjoy jogging and doing Jillian Michaels work out videos but not everyone else does. There are many types of physical activities to participate in from yoga to kickboxing to sports to weight lifting. The different types of exercise activities are practically endless. Take your pick.

The importance of exercise is evident but the big question we still need to answer is this: How do we get more people motivated to engage in exercise? This seems to be a challenge lately in our society even with all the types of exercise available.


Haley McBay
Michael Clark
Meg Collins