"Must Read" - Best Exercise Options For Healthy Skin for ALL Ages

AWESOME INFORMATION TO READ

I truly love walking. Since I was 10 years old, I used to walk a long distance just for fun. The same holds true today. I have olive skin and my skin tans so easily from heat, not to mention from direct sun exposure. I tried everything, wearing sunscreen and reapplying every 30 minutes, wearing HUGE hat, walk early morning, or late afternoon...nothing helped to avoid sun damage/pigmentation. Absolutely NOTHING!  

Based on the fact that I am a skin care specialist :-), I treat myself periodically with chemical peels, microdermabrasion, LED light treatments. Also, I keep a good home skin care regimen to treat my skin darkening due to HEAT and sun exposure. Unfortunately, the great results I get from the skin treatments do not last for long because my outdoor walking habit, which is great but not for my skin. 

Here are few articles will explain the correlation between exercise and great healthy looking skin. At the end I will have other exercise alternatives that I used, which worked great for me.

MUST READ

Regular exercise is one of the keys to healthy skin. "We tend to focus on the cardiovascular benefits of physical activities, and those are important of course. But anything that promotes healthy circulation also helps keep your skin healthy and vibrant," says dermatologist Ellen Marmur, MD.  

If you have dermatological conditions such as acne rosacea, or psoriasis, you may need to take special care to keep your skin protected while exercising . But don't let skin problems prevent you from being active. Here's why.

By increasing blood flow, exercise helps nourish skin cells and keep them vital. "blood carries oxygen and nutrients to working cells throughout the body, including the skin," says Marmur. 

In addition to providing oxygen, blood flow also helps carry away waste products, including free radicals, from working cells. Contrary to some claims, exercise doesn't detoxify the skin. 

The job of neutralizing toxins belongs mostly to the liver" But by increasing blood flow, exercise helps flush cellular debris out of the system,". You can think of it as cleansing your skin from the inside.

Exercise has also been shown to ease stress. "And by decreasing stress, some conditions as acne and eczema that can be exacerbated by stress can show some improvement," says Brian B. Adams, MD. 

Studies show that the sebaceous glands, which produce oil in the skin, are influenced by stress hormones. Regular exercise helps tone muscles, of course. That doesn't have a direct affect on skin, dermatologists say. But firmer muscles definitely help you look better overall.

For all its many benefits, however, exercise outdoors can pose risks to your skin, sun damage, pigmentation, sun spot, liver spots, melasma, melanoma, freckles, acne, etc. 

"I knew something was up when my patients with melasma, who swore they were slathering on sunscreen and fading creams religiously and staying out of direct sunlight, found the dark patches and blotchiness on their faces were getting no better," says Shasa Hu, M.D. 

The more I looked into it, the more it became evident that reg­ular exposure to high tempera­tures appeared to be inducing oxidative damage and boosting melanin production in a way that was very similar to how UV rays cause hyperpigmentation. The best advice is to avoid exercising outside during peak sun time. 

For years, dermatologists have talked about the damage linked to UVA and UVB rays. "It's as if someone roped off just those two wavelengths from the rest of the cascade of light. But we are also regularly exposed to visible light and infrared radiation [which heats the skin] and are just now starting to understand that the whole spectrum affects the skin," says Neal Schultz, M.D.

So what is happening physi­ologically? "One theory is that heat causes blood vessels to dilate, which ups inflammation and trig­gers melanocytes to produce more pigment," says Marie Jhin, M.D., a dermatologist.

This heat­-pigment link may be one reason why some patients suffer hyperpigmenta­tion after laser treatments; people whose skin tone has more pigment (typically those of Asian, His­panic, Indian, and Middle Eastern descent) and everyone with melasma/dark skin discoloration seem most vulnerable. 

How to Even Out Your Skin Tone with Microdermabrasion, Micro-Needling, LED light Treatments and Peels

Researchers at Seoul National University College of Medicine say heat can also inhibit the skin's ability to protect and repair itself. Heat can lower antioxidant levels and raise proteins that break down the skin's spongy collagen supply, causing fine lines and sagging.

Sunburns increase skin cancer, risk and rapidly age the skin, erasing any benefits your skin might get from exercise. The best advice is to avoid exercising outside during peak sun time. 

The Duke University Medical Center found that a brisk 30-minute walk or jog three times a week was just as effective as antidepressant medication in relieving the symptoms of major depression in middle-aged and elderly people.

It is increasingly obvious that one of the best ways to maintain good health is through physical activity. Regular participation in exercise has been shown to be helpful in the prevention of such killers as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Exercise also helps to control weight. (According to the latest research, one out of three Americans is obese.). And because exercise helps to strengthen muscles and bones, it can even decrease your risk of developing diseases such as osteoporosis and arthritis.

Exercising for a sustained period of time is still the best way we know to make improvements in your cardiorespiratory fitness. But for many, exercising for long periods of time can be intimidating. And most of us experience days when unforeseen events throw off our schedules and prevent us from having a solid block of time for exercise.

Significant health benefits can be realized by simply ceasing to sit and starting to move. The risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure, non-insulin-dependent diabetes, and colon and breast cancers can be reduced just by becoming more physically active.

Conclusion 

So walking may be the EASIEST form of physical exercise. Packed with health benefits, walking has all of the hallmarks of physical exercise: it can be performed at low or moderate intensity, it’s easy on joints, it has a low risk of injury, and it’s easy to get started with.

I am not the only ones who think walking is ideal exercise for most people. 

Many researchers think so too. Medical researchers have documented a number of clear health benefits to walking for everyone including the eight examples listed below.

Walking Can Be Just as Effective as Running

Walking Is Easier to Stick With

Walking Improves Cardiovascular Health

Walking Fights Weight Problems

Walking Boosts Your Immune System.

Walking Reduces Risk of Elderly Disability

Walking Prevents and Reduces Pain from Arthritis

Walking Can Add Healthy Years to Your Life