If I could encourage people to change one thing in their life, it would be to add in some kind of activity. That probably goes without saying for anyone who has even skimmed my previous blog posts, and it likely won’t be changing with future posts, because, as I’ve been reminded recently, exercise has huge effects that go way beyond its ability to burn calories.
I know this, because I had to slow down my exercise significantly recently due to an injury. The entire time, I was trying to think of what I could do to keep myself exercising regularly, but each time I thought I had a good solution, I’d realize that it was aggravating my injury. Eventually, I had to decide to take a few days off and allow myself to heal. The first couple days were okay, apart from the fact that I didn’t like feeling limited, but by the 4th and 5th day, I started to notice that life’s little stresses were starting to feel bigger and bigger. It had been a few years since I had that feeling, because I learned a long time ago that it’s not worth getting out of my routine for too long.
Sometimes it’s nice to have a little reminder that exercise is the cheapest and easiest way to help control life stress (even if it may not feel that easy in the moment). Since I realized the effect that lack of activity was having on my mental outlook, I’ve found new ways to get my heart rate up until I can go back to running regularly. For most of us, exercise is something that easily accessible, whether it’s going for a walk or riding a bike. I know it’s hard to make it out those first few times, but believe me, once you make it a part of your life, you’ll miss it a lot when it’s gone.
I know this, because I had to slow down my exercise significantly recently due to an injury. The entire time, I was trying to think of what I could do to keep myself exercising regularly, but each time I thought I had a good solution, I’d realize that it was aggravating my injury. Eventually, I had to decide to take a few days off and allow myself to heal. The first couple days were okay, apart from the fact that I didn’t like feeling limited, but by the 4th and 5th day, I started to notice that life’s little stresses were starting to feel bigger and bigger. It had been a few years since I had that feeling, because I learned a long time ago that it’s not worth getting out of my routine for too long.
Sometimes it’s nice to have a little reminder that exercise is the cheapest and easiest way to help control life stress (even if it may not feel that easy in the moment). Since I realized the effect that lack of activity was having on my mental outlook, I’ve found new ways to get my heart rate up until I can go back to running regularly. For most of us, exercise is something that easily accessible, whether it’s going for a walk or riding a bike. I know it’s hard to make it out those first few times, but believe me, once you make it a part of your life, you’ll miss it a lot when it’s gone.