I know, I know, exercise can seem like hard work and at the very bottom of the priority list at times. And if it is really that good for you, then why does it feel so painful to get yourself to that exercise class or out for a walk or a swim? It seems to be the first thing that drops off the radar when something is going on in our life. Plus, the mind is absolutely brilliant at coming up with excuses not to exercise… “I’m too tired, I‘m not motivated enough, I’m depressed, I’m too busy, I need to help someone, It’s not a good time, the moon is too full”…
Yet if you knew just how beneficial and healing movement was for your body (yes I am talking about exercise- the type that you do with mindfulness), then you would see there is no question about it and there is no point in even letting your arguable mind get in the way. It is very easy to let yourself down on your “exercise date” if you listen to that monkey mind and if you continue with patterns such as procrastination, putting others first or not taking responsibility for your own needs. It is very easy to forget just how good you feel after a good dose of activity if you have skipped it often enough. So to get you back on the bandwagon, here are our top 5 reasons to get yourself a dose of movement medicine.
1. Exercise produces health enhancing hormones such as endorphins which give a sense of elation. YES, exercise should feel good! The “feel good factor” is what you should be going for in your exercise choices. You will also notice that you feel so much more energized with these amazing body chemicals flooding your system. I am not a subscriber to “no pain, no gain”. If it doesn’t feel good, then you are not going to want to do it again and again and again. Therefore, creating one more hurdle to getting to your “exercise date”. And on top of this, if it feels painful, it is probably NOT good for you. Our body is our greatest teacher and has its own wisdom. When we listen to it, we hear exactly how to take care of our body and what is not helpful. Nia fitness classes advocate that movement should give you a sense of joy, and if not, your body is telling you something very important. The more we can experience joy in our movements, the more our neural patterning is going to be wired to this sensation. By this, I am talking about neuroplasticity… What we practice again and again, becomes a natural state of being in the way we operate. There is enough stress in life as it is, without adding exercising to the stress list so make sure your choice of exercise brings you joy.
2. Exercise helps to reduce stress in the body. The body has a natural instinct to produce adrenaline when we are under stress as it gives us the drive to fight or flight, or freeze (which is usually accompanied by a hypervigilent mind and stressful opposing forces of excessive mental activity coupled with a diminished drive to act). Our primary survival response in a stressful situation is to run or fight, and we need to express this with our body or it becomes pent up and out of balance with cortisol, preventing us from having restorative sleep and causing tense muscles. So if you can vent this drive through exercise, you will be helping your body immensely to maintain a healthy state of being (and probably helping those around you as well, sparing them from your reactions of attack(fight) or negligence(flight).
3. Exercise assists with maintaining a healthy body weight. The obvious reason is that it helps you to burn fat and calories. However there are some other sneaky mechanisms worth mentioning about exercising for weight loss. You can actually reduce your appetite by getting active! When your hunger or cravings have not be curbed after you have eaten, try going for a walk or getting busy with the house cleaning. While you are burning up those calories, your body is also reducing insulin circulating in the blood which was triggered by that carbohydrate meal that you just had, (which we are not suggesting you eradicate.) Another fringe benefit is that exercise increases your muscle mass and metabolism, which in turn helps you to burn more calories at rest. When your body moves, it promotes lymphatic movement and drainage which is your body’s way of eliminating waste. The sense of toxicity from accumulated waste in your system is a very sluggish feeling which is an extra battle to keep yourself motivated to exercise and lose weight. Additionally, toxicity in the body needs to be stored in a safe place, and that safe place is fat cells, and this type of fat cells we are better off without.
4. Exercise models your body to be more fully functional in the world. For example strengthening exercise promotes bone density, thereby preventing osteoporosis and breaks and fractures. Balancing exercises develops your body’s ability to maintain stability when you encounter unstabilising forces such as stepping on an uneven surface or being knocked from the side. Therefore you have less risk of falling and injuring yourself. This is generally why elderly people have so many falls. They become less mobile and are not exercising their ability to balance. Activities that promote flexibility in the body assist to keep our muscles and fascia of the body supple, which supports neurological signaling for movement. This also prevents sprains and tears. When our muscles are hypertonic (in a more contracted state) we have a greater chance of over-extending them and tearing the muscle tissue or it can create excess friction around tendons, joints and ligaments. By keeping our bodies agile and moving through a variety of movement activities we are giving it the best chance to keep joints lubricated and muscles strong and fully functional.
5. Exercise stimulates healthy circulation and heart health. With Heart Disease being the number 1 cause of death, and with the decrease in activity as a result of the technology age, it does beg the question, “Are we all getting enough exercise?”
If you are interested in shifting out of lethargy and enhancing your health, fitness and weight loss, call Simone on 0427 320 302 for a complimentary phone consultation and learn about how she can help you to achieve your goals with a lot more ease and joy.
Simone is a Nia Technique fitness instructor and Specialised Kinesiology Practitioner and has over 16 years of experience empowering people to master their body and their life and achieve an optimum state of wellbeing