My Journey to Finding Movement I Love
After a week away in the French Alps skiing and snow walking I have reignited passion for my movement again. Over the past few months I have found myself making excuses as to why I can’t exercise, too busy, worked late, lacking in energy etc etc .Of course there are times when you need to rest but movement is essential for both our physical and mental health.
I used to think exercise meant going to the gym or always doing high intensity exercise classes, I would see exercise as a chore, something I had to do to burn off excess food I had eaten. My relationship with exercise was not a happy one. It wasn’t until I started to listen to my body and try different types of exercise that I realised there is more to exercise than burning off calories. A couple of years a go I was close to burning out and I would be doing HIT training a few times a week on top of a stressful schedule and would feel constantly exhausted. I worked with a wellbeing professional who helped me realise that i needed to switch out my high intensity exercises with a more restorative practice, I started Yin and I-Rest Yoga and started to walk more. The difference was amazing for both my physical and mental health. Sometime those extra pounds you want to lose will come when you start to slow down, stress as such a major impact on your body. I will talk about this in another blog post.
Some of my favourite types of movement; Yoga (Hatha and I- Rest), TRX training, Cycling, Walking, Skiing, Pilates and HITT classes.
The Benefits of Exercise
“If exercise could be purchased in a pill it would be the single most widely prescribed and beneficial medicine in the nation.” Dr Robert Butler
Exercise is such an important part of our evolution but what impact does it have on the body:
- Improved Immune Function
- Improves Blood Pressure
- Improves Brain Health
- Reduces Inflammation in the body
How much should we be doing?
We should be aiming for 30 minutes of movement a day. Just 15 minutes a day can increase life expectancy by 14%! Two of these days you should try and incorporate strength bases training, squats, push ups etc.
My most important piece of advice though is to find something you love. Movement can be so many different things. Go to lots of different classes, take a walk at lunch and get your friends and family involved so you can hold each other account. Once you start, enjoy it and start to feel the benefits it will make it so much easier to make it a habit and part of your lifestyle.
What movement or exercise will you try this week?
Sarah x