Palacios 1

Karen Palacios

Trishia Briones

English 1302-264

February 20, 2024

Literature Review: The Impact of Exercise on Health and Performance

The connection between exercise and health encompasses a number of benefits which go

beyond health and fitness to include mental health, disease control and enhanced quality of life.

While studies continue to find out the numerous advantages of physical exercise, it's starting to

be more obvious that these benefits extend beyond the physical world to mental well being and

cognitive functioning. This literature review brings together present information concerning the

effect of exercise on mental health, youth wellness, athlete performance, and cancer therapy,

offering a holistic picture of its widespread effect.

The research that was carried out by Ballar et al. is the initial step on the route to

understanding the benefits of exercise. These researchers evaluated the potential of moderate

physical exercise to restrict muscle atrophy in patients who were suffering from cancer cachexia.

This groundbreaking discovery, which was published under the title "Moderate exercise partly

restored muscle function in malignant mice," indicates that there is reason for optimism

regarding the incorporation of exercise into cancer treatment programs. Additionally, it

demonstrates the significance of exercise beyond the realm of actual physical revival.

Developing upon this foundation, Dasa et al. shift the emphasis to sports science and

evaluate the accuracy of monitoring devices in recording specialized athlete energy expenditure.

They discovered a noticeable lapse: "Some tracking equipment greatly undervalued caloric

input," highlighting the need for technology to optimize athlete knowledge and performance.
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The narrative then transitions to an integrated look at athlete development via Damrah et al.who

described how fitness objectives, physical fitness and dietary status had been connected. They

support an integrated training strategy where "All factors of athlete development have a major

effect on athletes 'basic complex abilities," bringing the disciplines of exercising and nutrition

science together in athlete conditioning.

Additionally, Fillon et al. examine post-exercise food timing and its implications for child

obesity management. Their findings "post-exercise meal timing postponed calorie ingestion by

67%," highlight novel techniques for lowering obesity, integrating exercise science into health timing

for health optimization.

The review subsequently expands the subject to the mental features of exercising. Fossati

et al. highlighted the beneficial psychological effects of exercise, writing "Exercise enhances

mood and quality of life." This represents a change from the physical to the mental and also

proves that exercise must supplement physical wellness by raising psychological health.

Research of Jansson et al. - Rasmussen 1and1 Laumann bring out the positive effects of

exercise on police pupils & young individuals mental well being, respectively. These

contributions broaden the narrative and demonstrate exactly how physical activity is an essential

for emotional stability and mental health among individuals.

Immediately after our discussion of the psychological benefits of physical activity, we

must then proceed to examine the physiological effects of physical activity. Moving beyond the

realm of psychology and into the realm of the physical, the research conducted by Lukasz A.

Malek provides an essential glimpse into the biological changes that occur as a result of regular

physical activity, particularly in women, with regard to the health of the heart. Malek et al.

present a fascinating examination into the ways in which "Female athletes display unique cardiac
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architectures, highly sensitive to load intensity." The significance of physical activity for

maintaining cardiovascular health is shown by this particular observation, which highlights the

adaptable nature of the human heart to varying degrees of physical challenge. The findings of

Malek demonstrate the complex mechanisms that are responsible for the profound biological

changes that can be induced by exercise. They also demonstrate the remarkable capacity of the

heart to remodel itself in response to the requirements of persistent activity.

Continuing with the issue of physical wellness, the review investigates the mental

benefits of certain forms of exercise, such as the analysis conducted by Paul A. Davis that

highlights the psychological health benefits of yoga. Davis determined that the "breath

awareness, relaxation along with mindful yoga practices had greater consequences on depression

and anxiety." As a result of this realization, physical activity is linked to psychological well-

being, and yoga is presented as much more than just a physical workout; rather, it is a discipline

that involves both the mind and the emotions. The study of Davis sheds light on the significance

of yoga to the field of exercise research and demonstrates its capacity to improve mental well-

being in ways that other forms of physical activity might not be able to.

Overall, the positive advantages that exercise has on a person's health and performance

are something that can be reaped by every single member of the population. Everyone, from

cancer patients to professional sportsmen and young people, should make it a priority to engage

in physical activity because it is absolutely crucial for maintaining both mental and physical

fitness. In addition, physical activity is beneficial for maintaining mental wellness. Furthermore,

it is required to do additional research in order to acquire a more thorough understanding of those

processes that underlie these influences and the optimality of exercise interventions for a variety
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of populations. There is the potential for us to enhance not only the health of individuals but also

the health of communities if we encourage people to participate in physical activity.

Works Cited

Ballarò, Riccardo, et a1. “Moderate Exercise in Mice Improves Cancer plus Chemotherapy‐

induced Muscle Wasting and Mitochondrial Alterations.” The FASEB Journal, vol. 33,

no. 4, 2019, pp. 5482–94, https://doi.org/10.1096/fj.201801862R.

Dasa, Marcus S., et al. “Accuracy of Tracking Devices’ Ability to Assess Exercise Energy

Expenditure in Professional Female Soccer Players: Implications for Quantifying Energy

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Availability.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol.

19, no. 8, 2022, pp. 4770-, https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19084770.

Damrah, et al. “The Effect of Exercise Discipline, Nutritional Status, Physical Fitness, and

Parenting Patterns on the Basic Technical Skills of Tennis Athletes.” NeuroQuantology,

vol. 20, no. 16, 2022, pp. 208-, https://doi.org/10.14704/NQ.2022.20.16.NQ88023.

Fillon, Alicia, et al. “Delayed Meal Timing after Exercise Is Associated with Reduced Appetite

and Energy Intake in Adolescents with Obesity.” International Journal of Pediatric

Obesity, vol. 15, no. 9, 2020, pp. e12651-n/a, https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpo.12651.

Fossati, Chiara, et al. “Physical Exercise and Mental Health: The Routes of a Reciprocal

Relation.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 18,

no. 23, 2021, pp. 12364-, https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312364.

Jansson, Alexander, et al. “Mental Health and Exercise Habits among Police Students in

Sweden: A Three-Year Retrospective Study.” Police Journal (Chichester), 2023,

https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X231181327.

Lukasz A Malek, et al. “Cardiac Remodeling in Female Athletes with Relation to Sport

Discipline and Exercise Dose – A Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Study.” Heart and Mind

(Mumbai, India), vol. 6, no. 3, 2022, pp. 187–91, https://doi.org/10.4103/hm.hm_19_22.

Paul A. Davis, et al. “Examining the Role of Instructor-Student Relationship Quality in Yoga:

Implications for Participants’ Motives, Stress, Affect, and Mindfulness.” Psychological

Topics, vol. 31, no. 1, 2022, https://doi.org/10.31820/pt.31.1.4.

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Rasmussen, Martin, and Karin Laumann. “The Academic and Psychological Benefits of Exercise

in Healthy Children and Adolescents.” European Journal of Psychology of Education,

vol. 28, no. 3, 2013, pp. 945–62. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23581530.

Accessed 1 Feb. 2024.

Rönkkö, Kari. “An Activity Tracker and Its Accompanying App as a Motivator for Increased

Exercise and Better Sleeping Habits for Youths in Need of Social Care: Field Study.”

JMIR MHealth and UHealth, vol. 6, no. 12, 2018, pp. e193–e193,

https://doi.org/10.2196/mhealth.9286.