The Less Obvious Benefits to Exercise
If you've been following my blog over the summer you will know that I've been doing regular fitness posts as I made a huge effort to get into shape. My initial reasons for wanting to do this is because I did want to shift a few pounds but more importantly I needed to improve my fitness levels and health, seriously there were slugs in better shape than I was. So since June I've been going to the gym and classes on a regular basis and I've realised there are so many benefits to exercise that go above the obvious physical ones.
Mind: I'm prone to worrying and overthinking a lot and in the past I've never had a solid coping mechanism in place for myself. Exercising releases endorphins which not only make you feel good physically but also really help to relieve stress and tension. I've found myself just generally feeling a whole lot better as well sleeping more soundly, having a real sense of achievement and not feeling as tense about things. When difficult and upsetting situations do occur in my life I pick myself up and go to the gym just to take my mind of it and then I can deal with it with a clear head which is a lot more constructive.
Confidence: I've never been hugely about the way I look or feel in general but since working out I've noticed I am a lot more confident. It's a funny thing to explain but when you achieve something that you never thought you could you can't help but feel really proud of yourself.
Social: Working from home can get pretty lonely so getting out even just to be around other people can really help. Even though I don't really talk to others it's more just being around someone else other than Bella, although she does have some great insight into my work. Going to classes also really helps with this, there is something so different about exercising in a group that can be so much more motivating than doing it alone. If you go to a class on regular basis you start recognising familiar faces and it's a lot less scary to start talking to people.
Posture: Although this is still a physical attribute it's not something that a lot of people pay a lot of attention to. I go to a Pilates class every week and I've noticed such a big change with the way I hold myself, as I'm sat down so much during the day it's easy for my posture to become slouched and hunched over but ever since I started going to Pilates it's completely changed.
Focus & Productivity: There gets to a point in every workday when we start to slump and generally work levels hit a lull. Mine is generally at about 2-3 and this is when I know that I need to do something else otherwise it won't end up in doing anything productive for the rest of the work day. An hour or so away from my desk really helps me to come back with a much more focused mind set which in turn helps my productivity levels ten fold.
What do you enjoy about exercising?
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