Health

21 scientific facts that will motivate you to exercise when you really don't want to

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We've all had those days when you know you should work out, but you have absolutely no motivation to do so.

It may encourage you to hear that exercise really is super good for you. There's a mountain of research backing up its many benefits.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend at least 2.5 hours of moderate cardio activity or 1.25 hours of vigorous cardio activity every week, plus two days of strength training.

You can work up to that goal by starting small, though.

To motivate you to get moving, here are 21 research-based benefits of exercise:

20 reasons to exercise
Yu Han/Business Insider

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Rebecca was an Executive Editor for Business Insider's news division, overseeing the Science, Speed news, Weekend news, LA news, Visual Features, and Voices of Color desks. She worked across teams to assign, coordinate, and edit breaking news, explainers, features, analysis, and investigations. She also developed guides, trainings, and coaching opportunities for the newsroom to get better every day.Rebecca started as a reporter on Tech Insider's science section in 2015, covering everything from solar energy and rocket launches to Zika, before moving to the news team during the summer of 2016 at the height of the presidential election and then running weekend coverage for 2 years. She's previously worked with the Politics, Military & Defense, and Video teams, and served as an editorial liaison with the product team that powers the CMS.She received her Master's degree from the Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program at New York University, as well as a BS in Biology and a BA in Journalism from the University of Minnesota. Rebecca has also written for Popular ScienceScientific AmericanScienceline, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and the Minnesota Daily.ExpertiseBreaking news, legal analysis, criminal justice, police misconduct, public health, abortion, space, energy, visual features, extreme weather, White House history, voting rights, executive actionsPopular articlesJust don't call it 'climate change': What Republicans in Dallas can teach us about saving the planetWhat Buzz Aldrin was thinking when he left the moonHow the 25th Amendment works to remove a sitting presidentHurricane categories tell only part of the storyTRUMP'S FIRST 100 DAYS: Here's how they compare with Obama's, Bush's, and Clinton's
Yu works with the graphic team at Business Insider as a Graphic Design Intern. She graduated from Parsons The New School for Design with a BFA Communication Design. She loves to take photos and collect mini-figures.