An exercise of any kind brings with it heaps of health benefits. One of the reasons Touch is so brilliant is because most of the time you don’t realise you’re doing exercise. If I’m honest I do it for the love of the game, and for the added health benefits, both mental and physical.
To support my case I thought I’d rattle off my Top 5 health benefits of Touch: 5 health benefits of Touch.
Cardiovascular Health
The raising of the heart rate that occurs during the warm-up alone is enough to strengthen your cardiovascular system. A strong CV system not only reduces your risk of a heart attack but other forms of heart disease and strokes too.The stronger your heart and lungs are the quicker they can deliver oxygen to your muscles and the better you will perform on and off the rugby pitch.
Weight Management
Playing Touch for 40 minutes can burn upwards of 700 calories! This means if you’re trying to get in shape for the season as well as hone your rugby skills you’re killing two birds with one stone! A lot of our players don’t worry about hitting the gym, they just up the ante in our training sessions which support them with weight loss! We run 30 minutes of Touch specific fitness at the beginning of each session and ensure anyone regardless of fitness background can ‘enjoy’ it.
Muscular Endurance
The explosive power used by Touch players has major health benefits, the development of lean muscle and fat reduction are just two of them.Muscular endurance is an important part of everyday life as it is the ability to work a group of muscles for a continued amount of time without tiring. In terms of everyday life, increased muscular endurance would mean that you’d be able to race up the steps to work or chase after your children without breaking a sweat.
Reduces Stress
Exercising in any capacity triggers the release of endorphins into your system. Endorphins are a hormone that boost your mood and help you feel happier and less stressed. A solid boost of endorphins not only helps reduce stress levels but also supports you with getting a good night’s sleep.
Social Benefits
The social aspects of Touch, on and off the pitch, are some of the greatest benefits. Self-confidence is a massive benefit of Touch, especially in young and female players. The beauty of Touch is that everyone can play and bring their skills to the table. You can leave your insecurities at the door and just have fun.
There you have it - 5 great health benefits of playing Touch. We could have gone on for hours but that would start to get boring and you need to get back to training…don’t you?
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