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Staying at home and not exercising can be bad for your body, experts say

Inactivity can decrease your heart, lung and brain function

Experts with CNN say staying at home for long periods of time can weaken your heart, lungs and brain function.

They say if you’re not exercising, you’re not raising your heart rate. If your heart isn’t pumping hard, it gets weaker, and the same goes for your lungs. They say due to inactivity, losing muscle leads to losing strength, which is one of the strongest indicators of how long you will live. In order to keep this from happening, experts recommend doing things to stay active and keep your body moving.

Experts say exercising can also prevent weakened brain function. That’s because exercising produces certain chemicals in the brain that break down toxins in the blood which prevent them from killing brain cells. If you’re not exercising, you won’t be as efficient in breaking down those neurotoxins.

Experts also say you may experience weight gain during isolation. This is because while you’re stuck at home, eating is more convenient. The best way to avoid excessive eating is to stick to a schedule, and only eat when you’re hungry.

You may also notice more back pain and worse quality of sleep. This is because sitting and lying down all day can affect your posture and strain your back. Experts suggest stretching and walking around after sitting for long periods of time.


About the Authors

Gretchen Nowroozi was born and raised in Houston. She started working at KSAT as an intern in 2019 after graduating from Michigan State University. She is a producer for Good Morning San Antonio.

Stephanie Serna headshot

Stephanie Serna is a weekday anchor on Good Morning San Antonio and GMSA at 9 a.m. She joined the KSAT 12 News team in November 2009 as a general assignments reporter.

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