I know, I know! Most of you are thinking, how the heck am I supposed to think about exercise when I can’t even get out of bed? I get it! I too was often bedbound and housebound over my 20 years with Lyme disease and other co-infections. But the truth is, you have got to get moving! Even if it’s just to get out of bed and walk around your living room for five minutes. Our bodies were designed for lots of physical activity. The more you can move your body, the better it will be for your healing.
“If you rest, you rust.”
-Helen Hayes
10 Benefits of Exercise
1. Detoxifies
Exercise increases circulation of your blood and lymph and induces perspiration, all of which help you to eliminate toxins. The lymph is the only system that cannot move without physical activity – exercise, even simple walking is key to its efficiency. It is so important to move those toxins out of the body. The longer we stay sedentary in bed or sitting at a computer, the more toxic we become. Health Guidance.
2. Improves immune function
Exercise can enhance your immune system by providing a boost to the cells in your body assigned to attack bacteria. These cells appear to work more slowly in people who don’t exercise than in those who do. If you exercise, your immune system is better equipped to handle bacteria that could cause you to become sick. Though this boost only lasts for a few hours after you exercise, it’s often enough to help keep you healthier than you would be if you didn’t exercise. Harvard Health Publications.
3. Boosts mood and self-confidence
Exercise is a huge stress reliever and the endorphins it produces can actually help reduce feelings of sadness, depression, or anxiety. Being active and feeling strong naturally helps you feel more self-confident and sure of yourself. This is one of the best anti-depressants on the planet!
4. Extends your life
Leisure-time physical activity is associated with longer life expectancy, even at relatively low levels of activity and regardless of body weight, according to a study by a team of researchers led by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The study, which found that people who engaged in leisure-time physical activity had life expectancy gains of as much as 4.5 years, appeared Nov. 6, 2012, in PLoS Medicine.
5. Controls weight
Exercise can help prevent excess weight gain and help maintain weight loss. Exercise for weight control is not about intensity; it’s about duration at a comfortable pace. If you can’t get out for a walk, take a swim, hit the treadmill or do an actual workout, get more active throughout the day in simple ways — by taking the stairs instead of the elevator or doing household chores.
6. Strengthens muscles and bones
Exercise is essential for everybody. When we exercise, our muscles are stressed in a positive way, resulting in better muscle tone and retention of strength. This is important especially when we’re dealing with large muscle groups that affect body alignment and posture. Moving our bodies places a positive stress on our bones, which causes the body to maintain bone density. Stronger, denser bones are something we want to keep, especially as we age. Stronger muscles and bones mean fewer injuries and greater ability to handle the simple tasks of daily life
7. Improves sleep
Regular physical activity can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. Just don’t exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to fall asleep.
8. Improves oxygenation of brain and body
Exercise and physical activity deliver oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and help your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. When your heart and lungs work more efficiently, you have more energy to go about your daily chores. Northwest Functional Neurology.
9. Prevents constipation
“Aerobic activities are probably the best exercises for relieving constipation” – Dr. Stephen J. Bickston, Professor of Internal Medicine and Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program at Virginia Commonwealth University Health Center in Richmond, VA. Aerobic exercise increases blood flow to our organs, and bringing more blood to the gastrointestinal tract results in stronger intestinal contractions and secretion of more digestive enzymes. The stronger the contractions and the more those juices flow, the more quickly and easily food waste will move through the colon and out of the body. Aerobic exercise can include walking, running, swimming, biking, and many other similar activities.
Constipation is something that I struggled with for decades while I battled Lyme Disease and other co-infections. Once I was able to maintain a regular exercise routine, cleared the infections and changed my diet, this lifelong problem resolved itself.
10. Can improve your sex life
Do you feel too tired or too out of shape to enjoy physical intimacy? Regular physical activity can leave you feeling energized, as well as looking and feeling better, which can have a positive effect on your sex life. But there’s more to it than that. Regular physical activity and the energy that it brings can tend to enhance arousal for women. And men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than are men who don’t exercise.
Just do what you love!
I started with walking to the end of my driveway. As I began to heal and get my mineral levels up, I was able to walk around the block. As the months rolled by, I grew stronger and managed to do a little more each week. Now, I love to put on some good upbeat rock ‘n roll and walk in time to the music. It is like dancing to me – very uplifting and doesn’t cost a lot besides a good pair of sneakers. I also love going to the gym. I remember when I was the slowest one on the treadmill. I didn’t care that I was walking 2 mph and everyone else was running. I just enjoyed my time with good music. I was just grateful that I was able to get there and do some slow cardio.
When I am in Mexico I go to aquafit 3 times per week. Our instructor is so much fun and I have developed strong bonds with my fellow aquafit buddies. We exercise a bit and laugh a lot. Deep down, I am a mermaid. I love snorkelling, swimming or taking a gentle walk on the beach. This is where my spirit is happiest. I also enjoy riding my beach cruiser bicycle where there is little traffic; I can just relax and peddle my little heart out.
There are many, many YouTube exercise videos that you can follow and do at home. I have a few resistance training videos that I enjoy. As I get stronger, I am able to do more difficult routines.
Now that I am well, I try and do 1.5 hours per day of something a little more vigorous.
Eat well, kill the critters, get your mineral levels up and you will be dancing in no time!
Blessings and Best of Health!
Brenda ♥
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