The Importance of Exercise in College Life

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Staying healthy at a University is not the easiest of tasks.  Many know that a balanced diet is needed to help obtain or maintain a healthy frame or build; however it is very difficult for students to get a well balanced diet through college.  For those that travel far away from home a balanced diet is almost out of the question.  This is due to the fact that it is common for Universities to provide unhealthy food choices and very few healthy choices which helps to prevent students from obtaining a balanced diet and can cause these students to gain weight and lose their physical shape.  This is why exercise is key for people that go to college.

When referring to health, many people think if you aren’t obese than you are healthy.  This is truly not the case.  To be healthy means to be less prone to heart disease and conditions of that sort, to be in the right physical shape, and to be in a good mental state.  Being obese can certainly lead to these types of heart failure, depression, and of course poor physical shape.  Exercise has been proven scientifically to improve many aspects of one’s life.  It is beneficial to everyone no matter what size, shape, or weight.

This means that it is necessary for the University one is attending to have a fitness center that meets certain requirements.  The building must require the tools necessary for aerobic and anaerobic exercise.  This may seem rather simple; however quality and demand play a very large role in the requirements.  The fitness center must have a large range of free weights and weight machines, along with very large spacing for more safety.  This satisfies the anaerobic exercise, more popular for muscle builders.  Nothing is needed for aerobic exercise as it can be done freely, but it is also important for a fitness center to provide activities for this type of exercise.  These machines can range from treadmills to stair climbers, almost anything made to keep up one’s heart rate.  Also, it comes in handy when a fitness center has put in the effort to have personal training and someone to help strive for a goal.  

The Student Recreation Complex (SRC) at Arizona State University is a great feature for the students that attend school here.  The SRC has a weight room contains everything that a beginning weight lifter to an experienced bodybuilder would to perform their series of workouts.  This building also contains a wide range of machines on its upper level that focus on a more cardio based workout.  The building also contains many different racket ball courts and a basket ball court which can become useful when trying to have fun yet burn fat at the same time.  The pool is also a nice addition to this building and can be very effective in a way that many people do not see.  Motivation is also a major factor when in comes to exercise.  Many people lose motivation after just weeks of exercise because they have set false goals and have low self esteem.  ASU has taken this onto account and created challenges and events at the SRC to help students stay motivated and maintain the right focus.  Also, one of the larger additions to the SRC is the help of personal trainers. These trainers help students to get started, maintain motivation, get past the plateau effect, and ultimately lead them to a healthier body and lifestyle.

Exercise can do a great number of things to help a person gain a healthier body and lifestyle.  The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that “physical activity can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, the two leading causes of death in the United States.  It has been shown to improve your health and mood; regular physical activity can help keep your thinking, learning, and judgment sharp as you age and help reduce the effects of depression.”  Exercise will strengthen muscles and bones throughout the body along with helping bad side effects of arthritis (Physical Activity).  The list of benefits goes on and on, nonetheless the use of exercise is mostly done to control one’s weight

James Leighton explored both aerobic and anaerobic based workouts are the two main types of exercise in which people participate in, both of which are very beneficial, in Fitness, Body Development, & Sports Conditioning Through Weight Training.  An anaerobic workout deals with mostly lifting weights, while an aerobic based workout consist of rapid movement and keeping the heart rate very high.  Conditioning through either type of exercise can help one reach a healthier body and lifestyle.  

Being healthy is more important than many people believe.  Unhealthy people and an unhealthy lifestyle can lead to serious consequences, such as weight gain, obesity, and ultimately heart disease.  Exercise is necessary for anyone that wants to become healthier.  This has become a problem for many students who attend a university.  This is due to the fact that students who move away from home to live on their own are making a big change.  It is a total lifestyle change which almost ensures a poor diet because of the “food desert” surrounding many universities.  Most students do not wish to gain “the freshman fifteen” and this is where the SRC comes into play.  The poor quality of food around ASU forces exercise to become futile to maintain good health.  The SRC provides a student with the equipment and motivation to successfully become healthier.