Exercise is physical exertion of the body. The aim of exercise is to achieve a beneficial level of fitness and health, both physically and mentally.

There are three different intensities of exercise; light, moderate and vigorous.

Light exercise generally allows you to talk at the same time. Examples of light exercise include going for a walk, or doing some light housework, or gardening.
Moderate exercise should make you feel slightly out of breath. You should feel slightly worn out, but not to the point where it is unbearable. Example of moderate exercise are going for a brisk walk, or walking up a hill.
Vigorous exercise should make you breathe rapidly, and you should feel like you are just at the point where you are pushing your body's boundaries, without doing yourself any harm. Jogging, cycling, swimming and weight training are all vigorous forms of exercise.
You should eventually aim to be exercising vigorously, but if you have not exercised before, or for a long time, you should talk to your GP first about your fitness. It is important to start slowly with light exercise before increasing the intensity, and you should remember that everyone is different. What might be easy, or moderate exercise for one person, may be vigorous for another.

Many people think that exercise is all about joining a gym, but there are many different ways to exercise, each with varying benefits and effects. Some of the most popular forms of light, moderate and vigorous exercise are outlined below.

Walking

Most people walk every day but it is often overlooked as an exercise activity. Walking is one of the easiest, and cheapest, ways to improve your fitness. It is a light cardiovascular exercise, which means it improves the condition of your heart and lungs. It is also a weight bearing activity, meaning that it will help to improve your bone density. Walking works the muscles of your lower body while being low impact, which means it does not put stress on your joints. Walking can be done anywhere, try walking up and down hills for a moderate form of exercise. You could also try power walking, which is fast walking that uses more energy than running at the same pace.

Running and jogging

Running and jogging are very popular and effective ways to exercise vigorously. There is little difference between running and jogging, although jogging often refers to running at a slower pace. Running is a high impact activity which means it will improve your bone density, but it also puts considerable stress on your joints, particularly if you are overweight. If this is the case, talk to your GP first. Start by walking briskly and build slowly up to a run, you should still be able to hold a conversation but itshould feel harder than walking. Gradually increase the length of running time as you feel it getting easier.

Swimming

Swimming is another accessible and reasonably cheap way to exercise vigorously which can help you tone up your body as well as giving you a cardiovascular work out. The resistance of the water is very effective at burning fat and works most of the major muscle groups. It is low impact as your weight is supported by the water and you can do it at your own pace.

Cycling

If you have access to a bike, cycling can be an effective way of exercising vigorously, as it burns energy and helps you manage your weight. Cycling also has cardiovascular benefits and because your weight is supported by the bike, it is a non-weight bearing exercise. This means it is a good form of exercise for people with bone or joint conditions.

Dance and aerobics

Many people think that they cannot dance but all you need to be able to do is move your body to music. Dancing is a cardiovascular exercise that can be light, moderate or vigorous, depending on the type of dancing you do. It can also improve balance, muscle strength and coordination. Aerobics uses simple dance movements in repetition in order to provide a vigorous work out.

Weight training

Weight training is a form of vigorous exercise that is used to increase body mass, muscle strength, size and endurance. It involves using machine weights or free weights (barbells and dumbbells) to lift weight using slow, controlled movements. As weight training is essentially an anaerobic (without oxygen) it is not as beneficial to the heart as aerobic or cardiovascular exercise, but it does help to increase overall fitness. Anaerobic exercises are most effective when combined with other types of exercise.

Yoga and pilates

Stretching is an exercise routine in its own right. These types of light to moderate exercise improve balance, flexibility, circulation and posture. Yoga is an ancient Indian system, which aims to unify the mind, body and spirit. Modern, westernized yoga is practiced using a combination of meditation, breathing and posture exercises and can be tailored to meet the needs of those with conditions such as asthma, arthritis and back pain. Pilates is similar, but focuses on the core abdominal (stomach) and back muscles.