Exercising with a purpose

When do you know whether you are exercising the right way to benefit your body?

The Oxford Dictionary, defines exercise as the following, “engage in physical activity to sustain or improve health and fitness.” Now this definition itself may give you some anxiety, but it’s not necessary, because at NS Neuro Spine we want to clear things up for you on exercise

Sure, all or most of you are aware that you should be exercising a minimum of 3-5 times a week at 30 minute intervals each. At least this is what the internet and studies in health and fitness tell us but, have you ever considered that this doesn’t necessarily mean you have to do it exactly that way.

Some of you may easily become bored, especially if you haven’t grown up in a particularly healthy home, or if you are more of a creative creature. You might want to exercise, but your schedule simply does not allow for a 30 minute gap. Now, there is good news and bad news. Good news is, there is a solution to each one of these scenarios and more. The bad news, well, you have to make a conscious effort to stop being hard on yourself and allow yourself some time to plan.

1. Write a list of all the things hindering or stopping you from exercising, such as, “‘I don’t have enough time.”, “I just don’t have the motivation.”or I’m tired after work.”
2. What will your reward be. For instance, “I could have my favourite meal after my exercise session”, or “I will have my morning coffee after my jog or stretching session.”

5. Make you “exercise” something you enjoy doing. If you don’t like running, cycling, or going to the gym, because you may feel like everyone is watching you, go and find something you do like. Do you prefer socializing while exercising, or going solo with your favourite exercise routine. Have fun with the process. There are so many different types of exercise that doesn’t necessarily feel like exercise. Some examples include; Zumba, going walking with friends, doing rock climbing or even just doing a quick 5 minute stretch session at work, in between meetings.

6. Slow and steady wins the race, you have the ability to make changes, but only if you give yourself the time and space to do so. You should not be pressuring yourself, but rather giving yourself room for failure, in order to find your ”thing”.

If these tips find you well, and you would like to book a session with NS Neuro Spine’s Health Coach to allow you to identify your motivations, cues and rewards in order for you to become the best version of yourself and exercise with a purpose, contact us.