The Journey to Recovery: How Exercise Helps Fight Illness

After several days of feeling under the weather, the importance of maintaining regular physical activity becomes abundantly clear. This was the experience shared during a recent workout session where the benefits of pushing through illness to regain strength were on full display.

“I have been feeling sick for some days, I have not really exercised and I did not do any good for my system,” the participant explained. “Not exercising did not help me, but made my body stiff. I tried to stretch, even the back of my legs, my nails, my toes, everything pained me because of lack of exercise.”

The Challenge of Getting Back on Track

The 20-minute workout session demonstrated how quickly our bodies can lose conditioning when we pause our fitness routines. Despite experiencing headaches and congestion, the determination to push through was evident.

“My head is aching, my nose is growing, but I will be fine,” was the mantra that kept the momentum going throughout the session.

Mind Over Matter

A key takeaway from the session was the importance of mental discipline in maintaining a healthy lifestyle:

“It is very hard to lose weight but very easy to gain weight. All you need to do is push your body, not letting your body control you. Control your mouth, that’s when you feel like eating shawarma, you say no, I will not eat shawarma today, I will exercise instead.”

This philosophy of mind over matter extends beyond just exercise: “Control your mouth, control your belly, control your cravings, control everything and then force your body to move. Force it – it’s not easy, but force it.”

Progress, Not Perfection

The gradual return to fitness was notable. “If it was yesterday, I cannot sustain this jogging for five minutes non-stop. Two days ago was the worst of them all.”

This progressive improvement highlights an important principle in fitness: “Your health is wealth. When you are in good health, you can do anything. It’s only when you cannot do certain things that you cannot achieve your goals.”

Starting Small

For those intimidated by exercise, the advice was clear: “We need to run, we need to exercise anyhow we can. We must not be professional. You must not lift 100 pounds – just start by lifting 10 pounds, 5 pounds. If you cannot lift 10 pounds, just little by little, we are going to be fine.”

The workout session utilized a treadmill with various settings for speed, incline, calorie counting and step tracking. As fitness levels improve, the settings can be gradually increased.

“When I lose weight, I’ll start running at 10 because that requires more effort. If I put it now, I will fall because of my weight. I used to put it up to seven before, I used to put up to nine. But now I can do up to seven.”

The Reward of Persistence

By the end of the session, the transformation was visible. “I was cold earlier, but now I’m sweating. My energy level is coming back.”

Despite growing tired, the determination remained: “I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it.”

This experience serves as a reminder that consistency in physical activity is crucial for maintaining health and recovering from illness. Even when we don’t feel our best, sometimes gentle movement can be the medicine our bodies need.