The weekend is a time that could be used to rest and, why not, to exercise. Samantha Clayton, global vice president of Sports Performance and Physical Education at Herbalife, says that there are multiple benefits of an active life, such as helping us relax.
Experts often cite a sedentary lifestyle as a major risk factor for a range of chronic diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and even some types of cancer. It’s also linked to the development of mental health problems like anxiety and depression. But the benefits of an active lifestyle go far beyond disease prevention, Clayton says.
Juan Pablo Zelaya, coordinator of the Technician in Fitness and Physical Training Center Management course at Galileo University, is a promoter of movement, even if it is for a few minutes it is much better than doing nothing, he says. In addition, it has been scientifically proven that even a short period of time is always positive.
But what can motivate people to exercise? The Mayo Clinic in its book Healthy Weight for everybody (Healthy weight for all)) suggests that people often have obstacles to starting a routine, such as not having time, being too tired, feeling like they don’t like exercise or feeling like they are no longer young, in addition to not having motivation.
The ideal is that in the face of these thoughts we can find strategies to propose goals and actions that help us take the first step and exercise.
One recommendation is to look for activities that you enjoy. If someone likes dancing, that might be the exercise they need, while others would enjoy swimming or going for a walk more. The ideal is to focus on small steps and be realistic about goals that will lead to achieving 150 minutes of movement a week.
What motivates us most to exercise?
Although some people prefer to exercise alone or according to their discipline, experts also recommend seeking social support when moving.
Exercising with a friend or family member can help keep you motivated, as can getting involved in a group exercise.
Those who decide to exercise often give up within a month, according to a study by Edith Cowan University in Australia, which explains some of the factors that play an important role in whether or not this desire is achieved.
Nearly 300 Australians were surveyed over two months in early 2022 and answered questions about their fitness goal resolutions, different types of motivation, mental wellbeing and more. One of the resolutions was that When a person acts for personal reasons and for their own well-being, they achieve greater perseverance in their exercise.
On the other hand, the research team found that external motivation does not have the same impact, that is, exercising only for the sake of it. approval from others, material rewards, or seeking resolution for feelings of guilt or shame.
Along the same lines of looking for those aspects that motivate us, another study published in Lancet Psychiatry revealed that people who exercise regularly have fewer bad days related to mental health than those who do not. The greatest positive associations were observed with popular team sports such as cycling, aerobic activities and gymnastics.
Why this difference of a better group response? Gretchen Reynods in the book The first 20 minutes discusses scientific findings that reveal how to exercise harder, train better, and live longer, and describes an experiment that found that in a species of gregarious, social rats, their brains did not benefit as much from exercise as when they shared cages.
Loneliness increases the level of stress hormones in the brains of animals. Exercise added stress and appeared to cancel out the positive effects of physical activity. In contrast, rats in shared cages produced copious amounts of new neurons during exercise; solitary rodents did not.
Similarly, a study from Oxford University explains that exercising with a partner or loved ones releases more endorphins than those who train alone. These produce a feeling of well-being or emotional satisfaction, as well as being associated with reducing pain and inflammation.
Endorphins, on that level, alleviate depression and anxiety to some extent, which produces that feeling of euphoria that is so satisfying to those who exercise.
Where to start?
The following tips may help you in your exercise goal:
- Do activities you enjoy. Don’t limit yourself to traditional forms of exercise. Dancing, swimming or water aerobics, there are different disciplines and options to choose from.
- If you prefer to walk or run, that is also valid.
- Focus on small steps. Be realistic and have achievable goals. You could start by taking the stairs instead of the elevator.
- Reward yourself in some way when you achieve a goal and set a new challenge.
- Don’t forget to do a warm-up, stretching exercises, and also do exercises to cool down and increase flexibility.
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