Sweat with your pet - health benefits of working out with your pooch

Several of my clients bring their pooches in for workouts at Urbanfitt. It adds colour. I like it! Today, Honey came for a visit with her new owner. Seems she thinks she owns her new mama as displayed in the photos below. They are priceless.
These pics were taken during the core class today.

First up we have the scapular retraction exercise called the "T".


Next we have the 'dead bug' to fire up the transversus abdominus.



We finished with several stretches. Here's a pic of the dog assisted pidgeon. One of my favourites. Honey's weight really assisted her mama in going deeper into the glute and hip release ;)


Another visitor this week was a Chow named Alphie. He's a big ball of love and fur.


But seriously, there are many health benefits with having a pet.

1) Pets Can Improve Your Mood:
Research supports the mood-enhancing benefits of pets. A recent study found that men with AIDS were less likely to suffer from depression if they owned a pet. It's hard to be grumpy when you have a pet happy to see you when you get home every day.

2) Pets Control Blood Pressure Better Than Drugs:
Yes, it’s true. While ACE inhibiting drugs can generally reduce blood pressure, they aren’t as effective on controlling spikes in blood pressure due to stress and tension. Groups of hypertensive (AKA type A) New York stockbrokers who got dogs or cats were found to have lower blood pressure and heart rates than those who didn’t get pets.

3) Pets Encourage You To Get Out And Exercise:
The guilt of not walking a dog is more likely to get us off the couch than a workout video. Maybe the thought of taking care of someone else is a stronger motivator than taking care of ourselves.

4) Pets Can Help With Social Support:
I totally agree with this one. I chat with more people when I'm out with Maggie and more people approach me on the street or even just smile. Isolation is a very strong predictor of health and recovery from illness.

5) Pets Stave Off Loneliness and Provide Unconditional Love:
This one is a no brainer. I think a dog is a must when you live alone.

6) Pets Can Reduce Stress—Sometimes More Than People:
While we all know the power of talking about your problems with a good bud who’s also a good listener, research shows that spending time with a pet may be even better! People were less stressed when their pets were with them than when a tight friend or even a partner was present! Maybe the unconditional not giving advice thing about pets is the key to this one.