Did you know that laughing can help you lose weight? Everything you do burns some number of calories; therefore, you burn calories each time you laugh. Laughter also is good for your emotional and physical health, preparing you for a more rigorous exercise regimen, which will help you burn even more calories.

How many calories can you burn laughing?

A study conducted by researchers at Vanderbilt University revealed that you can burn as many as 50 calories when you laugh for 10 to 15 minutes, adding up to a weight loss of about 4 pounds in a year.

Is laughing really a workout?

Laughing is a form of physical exercise. When you laugh, you get a mini core workout by exercising your diaphragm and contracting your belly muscles. Laughter also exercises the muscles in your shoulders and back.

When you move and laugh at the same time, you increase your heart rate, metabolism, and blood flow to the muscles—all factors that help you exercise more effectively to burn calories. In addition, laughter provides cardio exercise that helps lower your resting heart rate.

How can laughter contribute to a better physical workout?

Laughter increases endorphin levels—the body's natural feel-good hormones. An elevated mood can lead to higher motivation, making it easier to get through a more intense physical workout. Exercising while you are in a positive mood can help keep you plugging away at it longer.

How else does laughter help you work out to get the maximum benefit?

Laughter helps improve your breathing. Even though you may feel slightly winded following a good belly laugh, laughing helps you develop the proper breathing technique.

By including laughter as a regular part of your workout routine, you learn to breathe better while exercising. Proper breathing is particularly beneficial when performing more rigorous exercises, including intense cardio workouts or lifting heavy weights.

How else can laughing help you lose weight? Laughing does more than burn calories; laughter lowers cortisol levels. When your cortisol levels are too high, you may be tempted to overeat. High levels of cortisol can slow metabolism and result in the body storing more fat in the belly area—both good reasons to engage in some hearty laughter each day.  

What else can laughter do for you? Laughter can keep you healthier by giving your immune system a boost. Laughing increases the production of T cells – antibodies that help fight off germs. If you keep from getting down with a cold or flu, you'll be able to stay active. Your activity level plays a key role in weight loss.

How can you get yourself laughing to help take off those extra pounds? It may be easier to laugh than you think. Spend time playing with your kids and acting silly. Playing burns calories and can also get you giggling.

Don't worry about looking foolish. Dance around the house to lively music until you find yourself laughing. Not only will you burn calories, you'll relieve tension, which helps keep your muscles limber for heavier exercise.

Some weight loss centers also offer laughter yoga classes where you begin by laughing for no reason. You practice laughter as an exercise without jokes or humor to get you started. Although you may be pretending to laugh at first, your laughter eventually becomes real. If you're interested in learning more about weight loss, contact companies like Figure Weight Loss.

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