Ryan Ondler
Rebecca Goossens
Senior Seminar
12 February 2018
Just Do It
There is a 44-year-old man who lives in DC, MN who has Type 2 diabetes. His diabetes
led to kidney failure, which led to dialysis treatments three times per week while waiting on a
transplant list indefinitely. It also led to a great deal of pain and several other serious
complications, illnesses, and infections, including a partial amputation of his right foot from lack
of circulation when infection from a small puncture set in. Though considered overweight rather
than “obese,” he freely admits that he lived a sedentary lifestyle with a poor diet for too many
years, and that this led to diabetes and its snowball effects. His story alone displays several of
the numerous reasons that regular exercise and a healthy diet should be part of everyone’s daily
life.
On its own, a healthy diet has great benefits, and these are not limited to physical health.
Just generally, people who feel they look better by maintaining a healthy weight through diet,
feel better about themselves overall, though there are always exceptions, of course. There can
also be a more literal effect on people from a healthy diet, though. Numerous studies offer proof
that a healthy diet makes people happier overall, but one found specifically that “on the day’s
young adults ate more fruits and vegetables, they reported feeling calmer, happier and more
A healthy diet also aids in strengthening bones and every other system in the body.
Calcium from dairy products, vitamin D, and folic acid from greens like spinach and kale
support the skeleton, preventing osteoporosis and fractures throughout life. Iron, potassium, and
vitamins B12, K, and E are essential to the circulatory system. Vitamins A and C in fruits help
protect and repair the skin. A healthy respiratory system needs vitamins C, E, and beta carotene.
These are just a few examples, but boosting the immune system is one of the most crucial
benefits of a healthy diet. Germs are everywhere, but research has found that getting proper
amounts of fruits and vegetables lowers the number of illnesses and sick days significantly. One
study proved that this is true regardless of whatever other foods are consumed with those
Another benefit of nutritionally good foods is the natural, healthy energy boost they can
provide. Typical “energy drinks” that have become popular should definitely be avoided.
Caffeine and similar other short-term boosts, if used too often and long term, can actually cause
exhaustion by interfering with sleep and increasing stress levels, having the opposite of the
desired effect. Caffeine can also lead to nervousness, irritability, insomnia, rapid heartbeat, and
increased blood pressure. Choosing a protein and complex carbohydrate shake or “smoothie” is
a much better option. This would provide a comparable boost without those negative side effects
(Gunja).
There are thousands of other examples of how a healthy diet is beneficial. Even without
exercise, a diet alone can improve one’s appearance, confidence, and feelings of self-worth. This
is a great boost to overall mental health. Adding regular exercise into this mix helps in each and
every area as well. For example, exercise can offer an even greater energy boost. Blood vessels
dilate during exercise, increasing blood flow and oxygen to muscles while temporarily increasing
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the metabolic rate. This also provides a boost not only during exercise, but throughout the day
(Anderson 1). Exercise can also improve one’s appearance in ways that diet alone cannot,
On its own, a good diet has many benefits, and exercise alone is no different. Even
without healthy eating, the strengthening of muscles and increasing of bone density that exercise
provides aids in many areas of physical health including improving the quality of life in later
years. The heart is a muscle, and the American Heart Association offers many studies proving
that exercise reduces the risk of heart disease and other related conditions. For daily life,
exercise builds up and improves circulation of white blood cells which is necessary in fending
off harmful bacteria. Though exercise cannot prevent all illness, it can make for a quicker and
Exercise is a very effective method to help prevent cardiovascular disease and to promote
cardiovascular health. Aerobic and anaerobic exercises are different types of exercises that vary
based on the interval, intensity, and certain muscle fibers that are being incorporated. Two types
of muscle fibers commonly known for their differences are fast twitch and slow twitch muscle
fibers. Slow twitch muscle fibers are in use during activities that require more endurance, while
fast twitch fibers are involved in exerting maximum force for shorter periods (Anderson 1).
Examples of aerobic training include hiking, jogging, dancing, swimming, and anything
long distance related. What these all have in common is they use large muscle groups and can be
continuously extended over long periods of time (Patel). Aerobic exercise led to a significant
reduction in total cholesterol and overall better heart and cardiovascular health in a study from
Australia (Halbert). However, without consistency or even having too much consistency in
aerobic exercise will not show desired results. Researchers concluded that one to two hours of
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prolonged aerobic activity for two to three days a week is shown to be optimal for improved
health (Schnohr).
“Intense physical activity of very short duration, fueled by the energy sources within the
contracting muscles and independent of the use of inhaled oxygen as an energy source,” is how
the American College of Sports Medicine defines anaerobic training (ACSM). This type of
training includes most weightlifting activities, short sprints, high intensity interval training, and
anything that uses fast twitch muscle fibers. These activities also show positive results in
A study on 16 overweight males showed that combining the two different training styles
is the best choice for losing weight. Half of them were put on a program of both aerobic and
anaerobic training, and the rest just anaerobic training alone. They all showed results with
decreased body mass index (BMI), but the prior team showed the most significant results
(Salvadori). It is that estimated more than 250,000 people in the United States die from lack of
Exercise is not a cure, but it can certainly lower the risks of many diseases such as
cancer, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, lung disease, and many more. Jordan Metzed,
M.D. declared exercise to be a “miracle drug” that can help prevent almost every illness and has
very few side effects. A good example of this is found in longevity studies. Research compiled
by the Obesity Research Group showed that adding only 150 minutes of physical activity per
week can actually add more than seven years to one’s life (Obesity Research Group). Even
obese people who added minimal but daily activity increased their life expectancy by more than
three years.
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Stress reduction is another benefit of exercise that clearly helps both physical and mental
health, and as Claire Nagel believes, is often overlooked or neglected by most people
(Nagel). The release of endorphins during exercise improves mood and feelings. Adrenaline
increases blood flow carrying more oxygen to the brain, which helps with alertness and focus,
which also reduces stress levels. With stress leading to many other physical and mental health
issues, regular exercise can reduce or even prevent more difficulties than most people even
consider. Chronic stress can not only lead to health hazards like smoking, alcoholism, and
overeating, but it also negatively affects the immune system leading to chronic inflammatory
Making one smarter or more creative may not be among the most commonly
acknowledged benefits of exercise, but, interestingly enough, they are there. It is a fact that
building muscle helps build brain cells. This improves memory, boosts cognition, helps in
learning faster, reading better and even increases brain volume (Hopkins et.al). Similarly, a
study showed that physical activity “improved both convergent and divergent thinking,” which
The area of financial health should also be recognized as a benefit to exercise. The
savings in health care costs can be huge and should not be overlooked. A healthy lifestyle leads
to paying lower premiums for health and life insurance, along with lower medical costs. Unfit
people have more health issues of all types, which means more costs in co-payments,
deductibles, ongoing medications and treatments. Many of them also do not live long enough to
collect social security and pension benefits that they worked a lifetime for. Regular exercise
Though individually a healthy diet and regular exercise can each individually provide
important advantages, combining them into an overall healthy lifestyle is hugely and undeniably
the most beneficial way to go. With the consequences of a sedentary, unhealthy life being so
severe, so consequential, even so expensive in every way, more effort and resources should
definitely be dedicated to these areas. Those suffering now express great regret that they did not
do so sooner. Disease prevention, stress reduction, increased longevity, looking good, and
feeling good are just a few benefits. Better physical, mental, and even financial health are also
truly possible through a healthy lifestyle using just a little time and effort. With so many positive
Works Cited
American College of Sports Medicine. ACSM’s guidelines for exercise testing and
Akseki, H, et al. “The alteration of NTproCNP plasma levels following anaerobic exercise in
physically active young men.” Anatolian journal of cardiology., U.S. National Library of
Blanchette, et. al. “Aerobic Exercise and Cognitive Creativity” Creativity Research Journal.
premiums-1.aspx.
Gunja N. et al. Energy Drinks: Health risks and toxicity. Medical Journal of Australia 2012;
196:46
Halbert, J A, et al. “Exercise training and blood lipids in hyperlipidemic and normolipidemic
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10452405.
Hopkins, et.al. “Differential Effects of Acute and Regular Physical Exercise on Cognition”
Lampe. Health Effects of Fruits and Vegetables. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. vol.
70. p475-490.
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“Middle-Aged Couch Potatoes May Reverse Heart Effects of a Sedentary Life with Exercise
Training.” Middle-Aged Couch Potatoes May Reverse Heart Effects of a Sedentary Life
newsroom.heart.org/news/middle-aged-couch-potatoes-may-reverse-heart-effects-of-a-
sedentary-life-with-exercise-training.
Obesity Research Group. University of Ottawa, Canada. Public Library of Science Medicine.
November 2012.
Patel, Harsh, et al. “Aerobic vs anaerobic exercise training effects on the cardiovascular system.”
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5329739/.
Salvadori, A, et al. “Short bouts of anaerobic exercise increase non-Esterified fatty acids release
2014, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23619826/.
Schnohr, P, et al. “Dose of jogging and long-Term mortality: the Copenhagen City Heart
Segerstrom, Suzanne and Miller, Gregory. Psychological Stress and the Human Immune System.