It’s essential to learn to listen to your body. My intention at The Beautiful Person is to help you learn how to listen and then give you the resources to help you honor and respect what your body is asking for from you, particularly when it comes to exercise.
“Also, go inside and listen to your body, because your body will never lie to you. Your mind will play tricks, but the way you feel in your heart, in your guts, is the truth.:
Miquel Ruiz
Exercise is one of those areas in life where we are not taught the basic how-tos. I played sports from about five thru high school. I wish I still could play, not only for the physical aspect but for social reasons as well, but my body can only handle sports like cornhole, billiards, and bowling.
All I knew about exercise was what I did at practice all those years…and RUNNING. I ran. For pleasure. For hours. I loved running when it was on my own time. Running at practice sucked. Not until college, pursuing a degree in Sports Medicine, did I learn about how to exercise correctly and what it means to train your body for your specific goals or needs. At a very basic level, your body is designed to move and needs
Do you have this notion that exercise only counts when you’re sweating and hurting the next day? I have a friend who goes by that despite the numerous physical ailments that her body is living with. Many a conversation has been had about trying yoga or pilates. Both can be strenuous options with low impact on the body. You do not need to sweat profusely to get a good workout. Especially if your body is giving you warning signs. (Which doesn’t always happen)
Moving your body to gain the health benefits of exercise can be as simple as walking around the block a few times. If you haven’t done anything in a while, how about you start with a nice stretching session. Take a few deep breaths to help open your chest. Reach your hands up in the air. Now, wave them from here to there! Yes, I did just bust into a dance right there. But just do it, right from your seat. Reach up and stretch those arms and chests. Get the blood pumping! There is a start. It’s that simple.
Don’t push it too hard when trying to “get fit quick”. Take it slow and learn what your body needs to thrive. Adding exercise to a decision to make your lifestyle healthier means choosing a program that will work for your lifestyle. To me, CrossFit is beyond the scope of the fitness level that I need to be at to fully enjoy my life and this sexy body. I do not need to climb ropes, flip tires, or bang things with a sledgehammer. Nor are any of those relevant movements to my everyday life. Like I said earlier, I would love to go out for a run. But NOCANDO.
What I can find enjoyment in is the demand for flexibility, balance, and focus needed to practice yoga. I enjoy it and I’m giving my body what is best for it right now. I also like to switch things up. Cardio consists of mostly the bike since that is no-impact. I’ll throw in treadmill walking occasionally and the rowing machine because that is a fantastic full body no impact exercise. Other low impact exercises include swimming, elliptical, upper body ergometer (UBE), stair climbing, and any of those things that are a cross between an elliptical and treadmill. There are like 5 different ones at my gym but I couldn’t find one I liked when I tried them.
Point is that if you’re looking to start a new workout program you should consider choosing exercises that will be easily incorporated into your lifestyle. Other factors to consider besides fitting your lifestyle are
- time demand- how long are classes or video programs
- class schedule- Do you work out best in the am or pm? Does the gym have times that work for you or will you be running in late and stressed out each time. Will you miss one and then skip the next and then the next?
- class size- Do you like personal attention or is being in a class so full that you can only hear and not see the trainer?
- space in your home- Do you have space to move your body? Tae-bo was very tricky to do in my living room back in the day. Insanity wouldn’t cut it. If I didn’t have an oversized bedroom yoga would be out too. I can pretty much stand in place at my house. haha but I do know enough calisthenics to get through a 20-minute workout.
- equipment- What does it cost? Do you need a gym membership? Is it a $40/mth kinda gym or $40/class? Items for the house can range from a few dollars to a few hundred depending on what you’re wanting to do.
Some go hard and stick with it. Some go hard and aren’t able to make a habit of it. I suggest that you try to find something that is manageable and enjoyable for you. If there is a program that you’re interested in see if you can do a free trial or get a pass for a few classes. Let me know when you find something that works for you.
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