Exercise: key to good sex, good sleep
(CNN)
Updated: 2006-06-21 14:39
Brain boost
Regular exercisers may have to work less to jog their memory
in the long run, as well as experience short-term benefits in creativity and
reaction time.
One study in the journal Nature reports that sedentary senior citizens who
took up walking for 45 minutes, three days a week, were able to significantly
improve mental skills that decline with age. Meanwhile, Middlesex University
researchers in London discovered that 25 minutes of aerobic exercise boosted
scores on creativity tests that followed.
And one study "found physically fit workers were 12.5 percent more efficient
at the end of the day than their nonphysically fit counterparts," Comana says.
Better sex
If a well-rested, smarter and nonsmoking self is not enough,
exercise has also been linked to a better sex life. Poor general health can lead
to poor sexual function, so keeping fit only helps maintain or revitalize
performance and satisfaction in the bedroom.
After studying more than 31,000 men, the Harvard School of Public Health
researchers reported that those who were physically active had a 30 percent
lower risk for erectile dysfunction than the men with little or no physical
activity.
Women reap the exercise benefits, too. One study by the University of British
Columbia found that 20 minutes of exercise spurred greater sexual response in
the women participants compared with no exercise at all.
And overall, people who exercise regularly feel better about themselves, feel
more sexually desirable and report higher levels of satisfaction, according to a
study in the Electronic Journal of Human Sexuality.
Along with these lesser-known benefits, exercise also promotes health in a
myriad of tiny detailed ways, says Comana, with increased "coordination,
flexibility and greater efficiency in daily activities."
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