IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISE
Exercise helps keep your body strong and flexible, making it easier to complete everyday tasks, stay active, and prevent injury. It also improves your mood and sleep quality and reduces stress levels.
Nutrition and restful sleep are vital for health and longevity, and pursuing other self-care practices is difficult if you don’t have these dialed in. But what if you could do something that dramatically increased your likelihood of eating and sleeping well? Exercise does that and more.
HABIT CLUSTERING
Habit clustering is a group of habits that support one another. Each habit makes the other habits more attainable. Exercise bolsters your other healthy habits and benefits your heart, blood pressure, blood sugar (insulin resistance), and brain health. Exercising is not only about the strength gained from the activity, but also about the healthier choices you make when going about your daily life.
EXERCISE IMPROVES MOOD AND MENTAL HEALTH
Regular exercise triggers the release of feel-good hormones and enables you to manage stress more effectively. Exercise has been shown to combat depression and improve mental health and self-worth. If you are happy and content, you are much less likely to reach for junk food or alcohol for comfort. Things that used to bother you no longer elicit a reaction leading to lower stress overall.
EXERCISE IS ANTI-AGING
Maintaining muscle mass and bone health is crucial as we get older. We all hope to be strong, independent, and mobile as we age, but we're fighting against the decrease in muscle mass and bone density that occurs. Exercise and resistance training, in particular, can help ward off the decline. A sense of empowerment comes from maintaining your fitness and strength; past obstacles that held you back are no longer a factor, and you can participate fully in all life has to offer leading to greater enjoyment overall.
EXERCISE BOOSTS BRAIN FUNCTION
Regular exercise has been shown to improve brain function in older adults. It also helps us maintain cognitive skills such as memory, attention, and problem-solving. From the Mayo Clinic: Studies show that physically active people are less likely to experience a decline in their mental function and have a lowered risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Physical activity is one of the known modifiable risk factors for dementia.
OBESITY AND EXERCISE
Can you exercise with a heavier build? Of course you can! Just remember to start slow so your joints and body can adapt to the new movements. You don’t want to injure yourself or be too sore to work out on schedule.
When you follow a program to upgrade your fitness, your health & weight loss objectives become much easier to attain. At first, you may need to ease into the routine, but as your cardio and strength improve, you’ll notice how old workouts become more manageable and look to increase your intensity. After all, if you lose 10 lbs, that’s 10 lbs less you have to squat with not to mention that when you increase muscle mass, you'll boost your metabolism to burn more calories at rest.
Contrary to popular opinion, benefitting from exercise doesn’t require hours in the gym. You need as little as 20-30 minutes of activity per day. That may be a 15-minute bodyweight workout and a 15-minute walk. Once you get the initiative to start moving, you build incrementally and go from 3 days a week to 5 or 6. You begin to crave the activity and look forward to doing it.
WHAT IS THE BEST EXERCISE PLAN
The one that works for you! Just as everyone needs to find the nutrition plan that works for them, the same goes for exercise. Many programs and strategies help you improve your endurance and strength. It doesn’t matter if you choose at-home workouts, yoga, pilates, strength training, spinning, or tai chi. The best plan for you is one that you enjoy and fits your body type and abilities.
If you don’t know where to start, you can begin with a 15-20 minute walk. The benefits go beyond the activity as being outside, communing with nature, and waiving to your neighbors all have positive effects. If you are looking for a workout routine that you can do at home, check out this Workout For Beginners.
To begin exercising, follow these simple guidelines:
- Be consistent, figure out what days and times work best for you, and schedule them
- Make it enjoyable (you don’t need to slog on a treadmill)
- Have an accountability partner (work out with a friend or have a coach & you’ll be more likely to follow through)
- Warm-up for 5 minutes before the workout
- 10-25 minutes is all you need if you get into your aerobic zone
- Take pride in every workout you do
Once you have a base level of fitness, look into group classes or join a CrossFit gym. Being part of a community can provide social benefits, encouragement, and enjoyment, while a coach will help push you and make sure you’re doing the moves correctly.
When you start incorporating exercise into your daily routine, the cascading positive effects take over. You eat better, you sleep better, you’re happier, your energy levels increase, your blood sugar moderates, and on and on. When you create this positive momentum in all aspects of your life, the cycle is self-sustaining such that you naturally gravitate towards healthy habits. They’re on auto-pilot, and taking care of yourself becomes a part of your identity.
What are you waiting for? Exercising bolsters your self-confidence and allows you to dream of living a healthier life. Let’s go!