Exercise. Who? What? When? Where? Why?

Several times a week, one of my patients will say, “I don’t like exercise” or “I’m not an exercise person”. A lot of the time these thoughts are due to bad experiences with exercise, a lack of understanding about why exercise is important, or confusion about what actually counts as exercise. So, I thought I’d take a moment to explore the “Who, What, When, Where, and Why” of exercise.

Who?

One phrase that we hear a lot in our clinic is “I’m not built for exercise”. The problem is, if you are a living, breathing, able-bodied human being… you are built for exercise. To put it in perspective, dog owners make a point of walking their dogs daily because they know it’s essential for the animal’s health. This is true for dogs of all shapes and sizes. At the end of the day, we are nothing more than fancy animals, and the dog owner benefits from the walk as much as their dog does. This is true for dog owners of all shapes and sizes.

Another frequent statement is, “I’m too old to exercise.” This is simply not true. Our bodies continuously adapt to what we do. We get stronger when we challenge ourselves regularly, and we lose strength when we don’t. While it’s true that we generally loose muscle as we age, we still reap the benefits of exercise at any age. In fact, exercise can help maintain strength and fitness as we get older. Rather than diving into clinical data, here are a few real-life examples:

What?

There are lots of misconceptions about exercise and a lot of people are even unsure how to define exercise. To a certain degree, exercise and physical activity are interchangeable, but from my perspective, exercise should feel somewhat challenging. This can be something that makes you breathe heavier or something that makes your muscles feel a bit tired. Not all exercise needs to leave you sweating buckets.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a combination of cardiovascular exercise (like walking or running) and strength-building activities (like Pilates, weight training, or even heavy gardening). If you include a mix of these types of activities, you’re off to a great start. The best way to get started is to try to find something that you are likely to enjoy, which also happens to be a form of exercise. If you hate the idea of going to the gym, then don’t go to the gym. If you hate running, you don’t have to run. It’s easy to stay motivated to exercise when it is something that you enjoy.

When? Where?

So many people set themselves up to fail by trying to start exercise routines that are not compatible with their social responsibilities or their lifestyles. If you aren’t a morning person, getting up at 5am for a run probably won’t work. If your closest gym is an hour away, are you realistically going to go there 3 times a week? As we mentioned before, the best forms of exercise are the things that you enjoy. However, when first starting out, try to find something that you can fit around your busy schedule.

Why?

“If physical activity were a drug, we would refer to it as a miracle cure, due to the great many illnesses it can prevent and help treat.” – UK Chief Medical Officers, 2019

Regular exercise when performed at the right level (according to WHO guidelines) has a myriad of health benefits. This includes reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, reduced risk of stroke, reduced risk of certain types of cancer, reduced risk of diabetes, and reduced risk of all-cause mortality. The list of health advantages goes on, and no single medication can match the comprehensive benefits of regular exercise. While some people are motivated by these health benefits, for some people this is not enough to motivate them to regularly exercise.

In my view, there’s another reason that’s equally important: quality of life. As we get older, many people have big plans for retirement, but if we don’t maintain our health, our options become limited. We often see patients in the clinic who are no longer able to tend to their gardens, play with grandchildren, explore nature, or walk a golf course without assistance. These are losses that, in many cases, could have been avoided with consistent exercise. It doesn’t take much to maintain a level of fitness that allows you to continue enjoying the activities that matter to you, but it does require a conscious effort.

If you’re not sure how to get started or want guidance on how to advance your current routine, consider booking an appointment with Amy, our Personal Exercise Specialist. And if you’re dealing with any pain that’s holding you back from being active, our team of physiotherapists is here to help.

If you would like more information about our services, please call the clinic on 01276 37670. If you would like to book a session then this can also be done online by clicking the image below