How Exercise Helps You Live Longer, Get Closer

Exercise can lengthen your relationships by adding years to your life.

A walk with your spouse gives you a chance to talk over the day, and playing tennis together can be a bonding experience. But that's not why you should bother. Here's why: Getting active can mean a longer life for both of you.

33%: That's how much a moderately fit woman cut her risk of dying of breast cancer in a three-decade study from the University of South Carolina. Those with the highest fitness levels halved their risk. A daily half-hour walk can get you moderately fit; exercise vigorously for the same amount of time for high fitness.

32%: That's the amount that men in a 35-year study at Sweden's Uppsala University cut their risk of dying early if they were very physically active. Three hours of sports or heavy gardening a week was enough to do the trick.

See more ways to get healthy together and 6 ideas for feeling closer right now.