Physical activity provides long-term health benefits for everyone! By being active, you will burn calories that you store from eating throughout the day and—it can be as easy as walking the dog or as rigorous as running a marathon.   It's never too late to jumpstart a healthy lifestyle. Regular physical activity can produce long term health benefits. People of all ages, shapes, sizes, and abilities can benefit from being physically active. The more physical activity you do, the greater the health benefits. Being physically active can help you:

• Increase your chances of living longer
• Feel better about yourself
• Decrease your chances of becoming depressed
• Relieve Stress
• Increase your energy level
• Sleep well at night
• Move around more easily
• Have stronger muscles and bones
• Stay at or get to a healthy weight

When you are not physically active, you are at a greater risk or developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and stroke. Being active increases the amount of calories burned. As people age their metabolism slows, so maintaining energy balance requires moving more and eating less. There are different types of physical activities that can be done at all levels.  If you are not comfortable doing aerobics on land, you can always do aerobics in a pool.  Muscle strengthening can be done with varying weights.  There are weights beginning at 1 lb., so people of all ages can do these exercises.    Balance and stretching exercises help stability and flexibility, and can reduce risk of injuries.  Gentle stretching, dancing and yoga are a few ways of achieving this goal. Remember, always check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program.