Exercise and Sports – Life’s First Aid

Today I want to talk a little about physical exercise and the notion of sports in general. As I have already mentioned in my first blog post, my main objective is to inspire others to grow, evolve and develop, while doing the same for myself. My core belief is that in order to become successful in life, whether it is financially, spiritually or in any other way, one must begin by taking care of their body. Even the Bible refers to the body as a temple for the soul that one should honor.

I believe that physical exercise must be present in each person’s life. Being engaged in some kind of sport throughout most of my life, I can say with full confidence that exercising and doing sports is absolutely necessary. That is quite obvious, you may think. I am also aware that you all know about the benefits, such as a healthy look and a strong heart, but that is not really what I want to talk about. No, no, no, don’t get me wrong, sports in right proportions do lead to a healthy body, but the excessive amount of it may also, on the contrary, lead to health problems. There is a concept known as “athletic heart syndrome”. You can research this on your own, but to put it short, it I something that professional athletes may get. Basically it involves them engaging in intensive exercises for a long period of time to the point, where their heart physically grows in size. While it isn’t usually dangerous, it may make your life somewhat uncomfortable.

Now, where was I? Oh yes, I was talking about why everyone should exercise. I want to point out the two main aspects that I myself see as benefits in leading an active lifestyle filled with exercise.

Exercise and Health

The first is the most common one, which simply refers to good health. If we exclude sports, such as chess, or any other type of sports where physical activity is not integral, then any sport should inevitably lead to better health. That means a healthier face colour, light breath, good sleep and the enthusiasm to walk up the stairs to the second floor instead of using the elevator.

Exercise and Life

It is known that engaging in physical exercise is a great way of releasing stress and anxiety, and I completely agree with this. Ever since actively engaging in sports, I have been able to cope with a large amount of stress that previously would be unimaginable for me. Personally, half of my week begins early in the gym, around 5 o’clock in the morning. And although that may seem waaaay too early for some, it is a perfect way to start your day and to make the rest of it fulfilling. In the daytime I work as a developer, which requires much learning, thinking, and being still on the chair. Believe it or not, but the fact that you already were in the gym in the morning keeps you fresh throughout the day, and makes your sitting actually enjoyable. By the way, exercise is especially important for those of you that have a sitting lifestyle due to work or some other reasons.

Getting back to the second point – life. I must say that exercise and sports give you confidence like nothing else can. It is true, while others are being lazy and slow, you get to exercise, and knowing this really boosts your confidence in life in general. Although it may seem that exercise takes your energy away, it actually adds to it. The more sports you do, the better you sleep, the healthier you feel, and clearer your thoughts become. Honestly, these feelings are impossible to replicate without exercise, and it may be tough at first, but just wait. Once you get the feel of it, you will get addicted to the point where you will feel uncomfortable and empty on a day without your favourite sport!

You may be thinking that you don’t really enjoy moving around that much, but don’t let that stop you. It is the LAZY you speaking. Give the idea a go, explore a little, try out this and that, and see what you like best. I am sure that there is a sport for everyone. I, for example, spent many many years professionally swimming. I didn’t really like the hobby (my parents did), but it gave me the habit of pushing myself to the limits. I have friends who love to jog and cant live without it. And while I personally can’t really do the same because of knee injuries, I love to bike and to skate on a longboard. Today, however, my passion has become going to the gym and working out, and it has truly become an addiction. I find that picking up heavy weights really does the job. After only 50 minutes of intensive workout, I finish my visit to the gym with a 30 minute cardio, spinning, and then I head to the shower and to work afterwards. It really does feel amazing to be especially active, while others are still only opening their eyes. Just try it.

If you agree that it is time to make changes in your life to become healthy, happy, excited and motivated about life, I would most-definitely recommend to begin by leading an active lifestyle. Ride a bike to work, walk up the stairs instead of using an elevator, go to the swimming pool, gym, play basketball, football in the summer and ice-hockey or skiing in the winter. There is so much to choose from. It wont take long before you start noticing changes in your life, physical, but also emotional ones. One thing to keep in mind though – be consistent. You don’t have to go crazy and do many hours of exercise daily. In fact, if you haven’t been leading an active lifestyle for a while, I recommend that you start slow. This way you wont harm your body and exercise will remain to be fun, a hobby. If you feel that you have time only to do exercise twice a week, no problem, let it be twice a week. Those that can do easily more, please do so, but no matter what – be consistent. This way the results will definitely come. It is a sure-thing, I guarantee! Being healthy and “sporty” is awesome. It feels great, it looks great, and it does … GREAT! You will become a positive example to your friends and relatives, and will gain confidence, energy and will to live in the way that you previously lacked. Take care of your body like it is a temple, and then new opportunities for growth will open up for you.

P.S. I know that there are people who feel shy about going to the gym. The fact that they have never trained with iron before creates uncertainty and a lack of confidence in them. I personally don’t think that there should be something holding you back. To begin with, you may get help elsewhere. If you earn well enough, you could get a personal trainer to assist you. I recommend this. On the other hand, you can purchase a training program to get started. There are thousands of them online, and they usually do a good job in teaching you the basics of nutrition and bodybuilding exercises. One such program is the famous bodybuilder Ben Pakulsi’s Mi40 Training System. I had a friend go through this program, and he had a lot of good things to say about it!

Finally, visit the Muscle & Strength website, which is probably the biggest fitness/bodybuilding oriented website out there. They have plenty of free content regarding fitness, nutrition and supplementation!

I will end my thought here, but if you feel that there is more to talk about on this topic, or you would like to add or share something, please do so in the comments section. I will be glad to hear your story and discuss it with you.

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