The Importance of Consistency in Exercise: A Personal Recovery Journey

After several days of illness and inactivity, the benefits of returning to exercise become immediately apparent. This real-life experience demonstrates how quickly our bodies can become stiff and uncomfortable when we stop moving regularly.

“I have been feeling sick for some days, I have not really exercised and I did not do any good for my sister,” the fitness enthusiast shares. “Not exercising did not help me, but made my body to be 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 Returning

The journey back to fitness after a break isn’t easy. The first workout after being sick reveals how quickly our stamina can decrease. What was once manageable becomes challenging.

“If it was yesterday, I cannot sustain this jogging for five minutes. No stop five minutes jogging.”

But the improvement from one day to the next provides powerful motivation to continue. Each session brings progress, and the body begins to respond positively again.

Controlling Your Body

One of the most important aspects of maintaining fitness is learning to control your impulses rather than letting them control you.

“It is very hard to lose weight. Very easy to gain weight. All you need to do is to push your body. You force it. Not letting your body control you, you control your body. Control your mouth.”

This mental discipline extends beyond exercise to dietary choices as well: “When you feel like eating a shawarma, you say no. I will not eat today shawarma. I will exercise.”

Starting Small

The fitness journey doesn’t require professional-level commitment from the beginning. What matters most is consistency and gradual progression.

“We must not be professional as well. We must not lift 100 pounds. Just start by lifting 10 pounds, 5 pounds, then 10 pounds. Just little by little, we are going to be fine.”

This approach allows for sustainable progress without intimidation or injury.

Listening to Your Body

Understanding your current fitness level and working within those parameters is essential. Using a treadmill as an example, the enthusiast explains how they adjust speed settings based on their current capability:

“Five is speed running. And seven is also speed. When I lose weight, I’ll start running at 10. If I put it now, I will fall because of my weight. I used to put up to seven before. I used to put up to nine. But now, I can do up to seven, but not 10, not 11, not 12.”

The Results of Perseverance

Even in a short session, the benefits of exercise become apparent. The physical changes are immediate: “I was cold, but now I’m sweating.”

The psychological benefits are equally important: “My angel lab is coming back.” The sense of accomplishment and return to normalcy provides powerful motivation to continue.

Health truly is wealth, and regular physical activity is one of the most valuable investments we can make in ourselves. As our fitness enthusiast reminds us, “When you are in good health, you can achieve your goals.”