Motivation for Movement - how to get started and keep going.

​Realistically, health maintenance should be a major motivator for exercising regularly. Exercise increases circulation, is linked to improved gut health, helps muscle tone, keeps weight steady, can improve mood, helps glucose tolerance and improve musculoskeletal weaknesses and reduces pain. That is a lot of benefits! Basically, we can’t do without it so it is important to find additional motivation if mortality and morbidity prevention isn’t enough.

There are 3 main types of exercise that most are familiar with – all are important, but incorporating all 3 means we are getting the most out of our routine. (Some probably dip into other categories to some degree).

Cardio – running, walking, swimming, cycling, pump gym classes

Resistance – weights, pilates, planks, push-ups

Flexibility – yoga, basic stretching

How to get started and keep motivated:

• Do exercise you enjoy and makes you feel good

• Consider activities that are incidental exercise and fun

• Try lots of trial exercise classes until you find something you like

• Listen to suggestions from healthcare professionals – they know what type of exercise is best suited to you

Find cardio boring?

• Get music you love to hear or a new album

• Find a podcast that you can’t wait to listen to

• Listen to an audible book

• Find a friend or family member to do it with

• Give your trip a purpose – shops, markets, morning coffee etc

• Take your dog

• Visit someone

• Uber somewhere, walk home

• Make a phone call

• Spend some time with the healthy and fit people in your life. Find out what they do. Just because people don’t talk about the exercise they do, doesn’t mean they don’t do it. (It just becomes such an everyday normal thing that it doesn’t stand out as an event to report about).

And finally:

• Vary your activity – Mix in Resistance and Stretching activities/classes. Find exercise that incorporates all 3. Resistence exercise becomes more important as you get older to prevent chronic illness.

Did you know?

Recent research states that 15,000 steps a day is the ideal number to aim for. Less strenuous steps taken are less valuable contributors to this count. The more pace, the more valuable the step.

Need more health assistance? Get in touch at enquiries@purpletreetherapies.com.au or Book Online.