That's a decision that could end up saving people's lives as a researcher from the University of Virginia School of Medicine has shown the important role exercise may play in staving off a deadly complication.

One big reason a lot of coronavirus patients are dying is acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS. Although it only affects somewhere between 3 and 17 percent of all patients who have COVID-19, that range is 67 to 85 percent for those in intensive care.

Exercise researcher Dr. Zhen Yan said that he found a potent antioxidant that can protect against the illness that is produced by exercising.

According to his studies, exercise may prevent – or at the very least, reduce – the severity of ARDS. This is good news when you consider that research carried out before the pandemic struck indicated that roughly 45 percent of patients who develop a severe form of ARDS will die from it.