Let Us Focus On Regular Movement

Last week we talked about what we eat. This week, I want to focus on regular movement. Exercise not only changes your body, it changes your mind, your attitude, and your mood. Let Us Focus On Regular Movement

The benefits of being an active person include:

• A higher level of cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness
• Healthier body mass and composition
• Enhanced bone health
• Better sleep
• Enhanced quality of life

Our need for movement is supported by strong evidence. A more active person will have lower rates of:

• All-cause mortality,
• Type 2 diabetes,
• Heart disease
• Metabolic syndrome,
• Stroke

… and more

The benefits are real (and so are the consequences of not being active), but making movement a habit is NOT necessarily easy. Nothing about this Wellbeing Challenge is easy… that’s why we are doing it together.

How can you fit movement into your busy life?

• Research has found that exercise accumulated in several brief bouts has similar effects as one continuous stint of exercise. In other words, a quick 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening is equivalent to a 40-minute workout session.
• We spend an average of 67 hours a week sitting down. (What?!) Set a timer to remind yourself to get up and walk around every 25 minutes, or complete a few desk-bound tasks standing up.
• Find a walking, running, biking, or yoga partner. Enjoy good company and the benefit of accountability.
• Learn a different yoga or stretching move every week – make it a habit.
• Exercising doesn’t necessarily mean high-intensity training! Just one hour of walking after work could cancel out the negative effect of sitting at a desk all day.
• Sweat with the kids or your furry friends. Run around and have some fun!
• Schedule workout time and track it. Seeing incremental improvement will be motivational and create a positive mindset around movement.
• Master your mindset – think of exercise as something enjoyable, not as something you have to do. Reward healthy eating with a walk in nature instead of dessert.

Journal the answer to these questions.

1. Knowing everything you know about the benefits of movement, what keeps you from doing it?
2. What habits do you want to replace with 30 minutes of exercise every day?

Keep going, keep growing…