The Importance of Exercise in Recovery: A Personal Journey
After several days of illness and inactivity, the journey back to wellness through exercise can be challenging but rewarding. This was recently demonstrated when an individual decided to push through their recovery by engaging in a simple 20-minute workout despite lingering symptoms.
“I have been feeling sick for some days, I have not really exercised and I did not do any good for my system,” they explained. The lack of physical activity had negative consequences: “I 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.”
Pushing Through Discomfort
Despite feeling unwell with symptoms including neck pain, headache, and nasal congestion, they made the decision to work out. “My body is groaning,” they admitted, but recognized the importance of movement in the recovery process.
This determination highlights an important aspect of maintaining physical health: “It is very hard to dress as nice, but very easy to get weight. Very hard to lose weight, very easy to get weight.”
Mind Over Matter
The key to success, according to this experience, lies in mental discipline: “All you need to do is to push your body, you force it. Not letting your body control, you control your body, control your mouth.”
This philosophy extends to all aspects of health management: “When you feel like it is a shower, you say no. I will not eat today shower, I will exercise. Just go ahead, control your lungs, control your belly, control everything. And then force your body to move.”
Gradual Progress
An important lesson shared during this workout was the value of starting small: “You must not lift 100 pounds. Just start by lifting 10 pounds, 5 pounds. So we cannot lift 10 pounds. Just little by little, we are going to be fine.”
The workout itself involved jogging on a treadmill, which includes features to track time, calories burned, and speed. The individual noted that their weight currently limited their maximum speed, but they were gradually working up to higher levels.
Signs of Recovery
Perhaps the most encouraging aspect was the visible improvement in stamina compared to previous days. “If it was yesterday, I cannot sustain this jogging for five minutes, no stop five minutes jogging. If it was two days ago, that was the worst of them.”
By the end of the session, they were sweating and getting tired but pushed to reach 200 calories burned – a testament to their returning energy levels and commitment to health.
The experience serves as a reminder that our health is precious and maintaining it requires consistent effort, especially when recovering from illness.