E.xercise
E-xercise: noun
Bodily or mental exertion, especially for the sake of
training or improvement of health.
We all learned some years ago, maybe from middle school science class, that the main systems of our body (circulatory, immune, skeletal, excretory, muscular, endocrine, digestive, nervous and respiratory) need to both be fueled and ‘taxed’ to experience optimal health.
The word “Exercise” for so many of us has a negative connotation – that exercise has to be time-consuming, unpleasant -- maybe painful or just something we need to check the box on and “get it over with” …. Or , procrastinate on, do it tomorrow or wait for the weekend.
A Lean body is a healthy body, and once you have incorporated and INTERNALIZED the 4 essential parts of the Lean with E.N.V.Y. Program, you will be Living With E.N.V.Y.
So, how does exercise fit in?
E-xercise needs to be part of your day, every day, to be Lean with E.N.V.Y. How you choose to move is completely up to you – but make it something that you look forward to and that you approach your workout time with a positive attitude.
Unless you are training for a specific athletic event, your body will respond the best to varying your exercise on a day-to-day basis – mix up the modality, the location (indoors, outdoors studio class, etc.). One day focus on strength, the next day focus on cardiovascular exercise. On a day when time permits, exercise for a full hour or 75 minutes -- the next day you may only have 20 minutes. The point is to make it a part of your every day. Mix it up – take a Pilates or a Barre class, power walk with a friend, learn to Paddleboard or ice skate. The key is to keep moving, to keep challenging your body in different ways so it doesn’t become efficient in one way of moving and thus, ceases to change.
Ultimately, your daily exercise session gifts you something FAR beyond the physical benefits. You learn to appreciate the magic that happens in your mind from moving your body. A sense of calm, of confidence, of accomplishment…. Have you ever regretted taking time in your day to Exercise?. Unlikely!
Notice if you choose to eat more mindfully and healthfully because of how your workout left you feeling.
Notice if your life dreams and aspirations seem more clear, more possible, more tangible.
This is the E. of Lean with E.N.V.Y.
Energy Creates Energy
N.utrition >
Extra thoughts...
E.xercise DOES NOT require a gym membership, special clothing, a FitBit and nor a personal trainer to be effective.
Exercise DOES need to challenge us – we need to push ourselves to the point of feeling a level of exertion in order to maintain or to improve the functioning of these bodily systems, and for keeping the fat/lean muscle ratio at an optimal level.
For example, if you are holding a plank or out on a fast-paced walk, climbing flights of stairs, running, cycling -- or whatever your modality is – if you aren’t breathing harder, feeling a burning sensation in your working muscles – or, a sense of release when you finish, you probably aren’t exerting yourself in a way that will either keep you fit, increase your current fitness level or spike your metabolism to torch excess calories.
We need to keep the musculature of our bodies systems functioning optimally, and thus the systems (circulatory, immune, etc.) healthy to live a life with optimal health.
We need to strength train AND perform cardiovascular exercise with bursts that spike our heart and breathing rates in order to lean our bodies.
