Fit While Homebound
With everyone homebound these days, it makes it a great time to make the commitment to get in shape, healthy, lose weight and keep it off. It is quite enjoyable to notice little changes when you start exercising and eating better such as sleeping better, more pep in your step, and better focus and concentration as you work from home. With that said, what is the secret to keeping that motivation going to exercise every day? The answer to that question is: a good warm-up.
Why? Because it helps prevent injuries and can maximize the benefits from your workout. When you feel good after your workout, it will motivate you to keep going. Here are more reasons to incorporate a good warm-up whether you are practicing yoga, weight training, or going for a fast walk or run:
- Allows your body move in different directions safely as you combine strength with flexibility.
- Increases your range of motion (a key factor in preventing injuries)
- Prepares your mind and body that it is time to exercise
- Increases blood flow to the muscles making them more pliable and less likely to get strained
- Minimizes any muscular imbalances
- Helps you maintain good form throughout an exercise
Warming up before a workout can easily be done by going for a walk, walking on a treadmill, riding a bicycle, or doing some simple movements. Besides eating healthy meals, staying active is one of the best ways to keep your body healthy and strong while homebound. Plus, it will help improve your quality of life and well-being.
While staying home is keeping most of us safe and sound, regular exercise can help relieve stress, anxiety, frustration, and even alleviate depression as we go through this difficult time of preventing more cases of the coronavirus. Without regular exercise at home, the body can lose its stamina, strength, and ability to function at optimum levels. That old saying, “If you don’t use it, you will lose it,” is true, but regular exercise helps increase your ability to do other activities throughout your day.
Besides, too much sitting has now been shown to increase your risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke. Being physically active can help lower blood pressure, elevate HDL (good) cholesterol, lower LDL (bad) cholesterol, prevent bone loss, increase circulation, help you lose weight, keep it off, and live longer. Haven’t you heard? 60 is the new 40. The more physically active you are, the longer you will live with those extra years being healthier. Exercise helps you prevent chronic disease and illness associated with aging while boosting your energy so you can get more done each day.
You will sleep better, maintain a positive outlook and attitude through this quarantine, and hopefully be able to spend more time outdoors while keeping a safe distance from others. What better way to manage stress and tension than taking a break from your computer and getting in a good workout each and every day. Move more and sit less should be your new motto. You don’t have to make huge changes, just gradually add more activity and exercise into your day, one step at a time, and one day at a time. Are you up for the challenge?
Read On… (Hows Your Training Routine)
Talking about exercise is so easy. Yet even when you really want to keep at it, your mind finds tricky self-sabotaging techniques to apply. Excuses can range from I’m too tired (but not enough to stop me from a night on the town) to I’m too busy (yet still spend hours on social media). Sometimes we blame our lack of motivation on external factors like rainy weather or gym closure.
