How Exercising Can Save You Major Money

Exercising is crucial to your mental and physical health, as we all already know. But it can also be beneficial to your wallet. A new study estimates that regular exercise can save you more than $2,000 a year in medical bills.

According to the study from the Journal of the American Heart Association, heart disease patients benefit both physically and financially from exercise. In fact, research found that those who engage in moderate and vigorous physical activity for at least 30 minutes, five times a week can save an average of more than $2,500 annually in healthcare costs — likely due to fewer hospitalizations and ER visits.

But it's not only those with heart disease who could save a lot of money by exercising. Patients without the condition were also found to have spent notably less on healthcare expenses, thanks to their regular fitness regiments. While their savings weren't quite as great as those of heart patients, they still ended up spending about $500 less in medical fees than those who didn't exercise.

It's also important to make sure you're doing the right kind of exercise. Per NBC, the American Heart Association recommends at least 30 minutes of moderate-intense activity (like fast walking or lawn mowing) five days a week, or 25 minutes of vigorous activity (like running or swimming) three days a week, to boost heart health. You can also combine the two types of fitness to create a more personalized routine, as long as the total averages out to about the same time.

Obviously, there are plenty of important reasons to exercise — most importantly, improving your own mental and physical health. But if you've needed an extra motivator lately, just think of the big bucks you could be saving by hitting the gym.

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