Exercise to Stay Healthy! Exercise helps both your body and your mind. It helps lower your risk of disease. It helps you feel better. When you exercise every day, you can lower your chances of having: heart disease and diabetes. You can lower your: blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and blood sugar. Finally, exercise helps your mood. It changes how you feel. Exercise helps you have more energy and sleep well. Exercise with your kids! According to a national walking magazine, more than 60 million North Americans, or about one in four, walk regularly for fun, fitness and health. Many of us are choosing walking as our regular exercise because it seems to be just about the perfect exercise for people of all ages. Walking can be done anywhere at any time. Walking can improve several physical and psychological factors that can affect your risk for developing serious health problems. Fitness walking is walking at a brisk pace for at least 20-30 minutes, a minimum of 3 days per week. If you can't get your 20-30 minutes in at one time, break it up. Perform 2-3 bouts of 10 minutes of walking in a day and you will still receive all the benefits of walking 20-30 minutes. Benefits of walking: Reduces body fat, lowers resting pulse rate, reduces blood cholesterol, reduces blood pressure, increases metabolism, maintains bone density, increases flexibility and tones muscles, increases muscle strength, reduces stress, improves problem solving, improves self-esteem and makes parents and their kids healthy. WALK FOR LIFE