The Featured Exercise for April is
SOCCER

Soccer is a popular sport that is played by children and adults around the world.  It is a sport that brings forth passion, tremendous team effort, and helps keep the body in great shape.

A benefit of playing soccer is that it improves muscle strength. Soccer requires constant moving of your muscles over a long period of time.  This constant activity helps improve muscle tone.

Soccer also boosts cardiovascular health.  When playing soccer, you switch from running to walking to sprinting. Switching between these levels of cardio improve your heart function. As a result, blood and oxygen are effectively pumped throughout the body. Also, it has been proven that soccer helps lower high blood pressure, reducing chances of stroke and heart disease.

Bone strength is another benefit of soccer. Regular participation in high-impact activity like soccer exerts pressure on the bones which help to strengthen them. In fact, studies show that individuals who engage in physical exercise like soccer build healthy, strong bones and help prevent muscle-generated diseases such as osteoporosis when you age.

Weight loss is another plus when playing any sport. Being involved in physical activities will not only help with weight loss but also reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, obesity, childhood obesity, and certain types of cancer.

A great place to play soccer is at your local park. You can play with your family, friends, or join a pick-up game.
You can also join your local park’s soccer team (most parks organize soccer teams).
To find a park near you click here.