Among the games you can play at your home – in the living room or the basement, ping pong is one of the best out there. Not only the game is a source of sheer enjoyment, but also it can be a form of extreme cardio if you play hard.
Whatever your playing style be, ping pong or table tennis can be a rapid way to shed off some calories and get strong.
We have listed out top 10 health benefits of playing ping pong in this write-up.
Here they are –
1. Eye-Hand Coordination
Eye-hand coordination or hand-eye whatever you call it is the synchronized movement of both hand and eye with each other. Eyes work like the inputs – we take information through this and with the hands, we get to control our motion.
While playing ping pong, players have to move a lot in a very minimal area. To keep the fast-moving ball inside the boundary, you need to strike it within the snatch of a second. For making the perfect hit, the brain has to fire maximum neurons at a time.
2. Develops Extreme Reflexes
To hit the ball coming to you at very high speeds, your body develops super-fast reflexes. Your brain will fire lots of neuron at a time. And with both of these, you will learn to adjust with the movement by building some catlike reflexes.
The regular speed of the ping pong ball is around 25 mph, but professional players can hit them at speeds of more than 50 mph which is way too fast. To strike at this speed, they keep some distance from the table.
3. An Excellent Way To Shed Off Some Fat
You have to move from front to back, sidewise a lot while playing table tennis. The ball comes at you from all directions, so you run accordingly. This moving results in increased heart rate and faster muscle movement.
The increased heart rate exercises are known as cardio exercises. Cardio is a supreme way to faster fat burning. The more you play, the more your heart pumps blood.
4. Enjoyment of The Brain
Every exercise will cause your body to load the bloodstream with dopamine – ‘the feel-good’ hormones. This declutters your mind, makes you focused and helps you relax more in general.
Studies have shown that low levels of dopamine hormones have some link to Alzheimer’s disease. But people who play games, or participate in any forms of exercise have very low risks of it.
5. Comfortable for Joints
People with joint problems avoid games at all cost. The running and falling will worsen the pain they already have. But you don’t have to run while playing ping pong, neither you have to move about a lot. If you want, you can play it peacefully.
In other words, this game allows you to have the benefit of exercises while not hurting your joints. This is why people who had surgeries in the past or have their bones broken, can increase their body strength with this game.
6. Good for Calorie Burning
Depending on your body weight, you can burn some considerable amount of calories. Beginners will burn about 200 to 500 calories per hour. Weightier people burn more calories because more weight needs more force to move.
Alongside burning off calories, you sweat a lot while playing. Sweating helps get the harmful germs off your body. Also, the increase in core temperature is helpful for internal organs.
7. Stimulates Some Parts of The Brain
The brain’s front part, prefrontal cortex; helps us in taking strategic decisions. The calculations that you make happen on this part of the brain. As you need to make faster decisions, this area gets into more involvement.
Another part is the hippocampus, that helps in the formation of long-term memories. This part has involvement in the game too. You get more skilled as you play more because of hippocampus keeping the collection of the training.
8. An Escape From Working Life
Whether it is the club or community, the place you play ping pong at has a big impact on your social life. You get to meet new people regularly and learn to communicate and share your feelings.
Loneliness can be mentally killing someone. Having a good social life and playmates can make your afternoons a lot better. A sound mind is a key to good health, and it’s the same the other way round.
9. Improves Mental Clarity
The fast-paced game combined with physical movement and fast reflexes allow the brain to develop faster & build up new neurons in a shorter period. The benefit of this is the players get better at real-life problem-solving.
10. Works Like A Therapy
Especially for couples, playing a game together can make the bond strong and long-lasting. Couples who play together, live a happier life than the others. If you have a wife/husband, go and join the game with that person.
Hopefully, you get some idea about what can be the health benefits from playing table tennis you can get. Keep in mind that movement is better than a static life. It can lower the risks of various old age diseases.
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