Motivational Monday

It's Monday again... 

Well I know, this doesn't sound very motivational, does it? But with a new week comes new motivation and that's what I am trying to do today. 

I will give you 10 reasons why working out does your body good, and with those facts I hope to make you to change that '' argh... another week'' to a great and sporty week. 

#1. Fitness boosts your brainpower:

You know that doing sports is good for your body, right? But did you know that it also helps your mental function? Exercising boosts your energy level, even if you are tired after your workout, and therefore it increases the serotonin level in your brain, which leads to a better mental clarity. 

Wanna be more productive at work, in school or throughout the day, then put on your sportswear and go workout!

#2. Fitness reduces your stress level:

Did you ever heard of the saying '' working out is my therapy'' or '' When everything goes wrong, go lift?'' and '' Exercise, cheaper than therapy'' ? Well that's a 100% true as research has shown. Once you start working out, whether this is daily or only twice a week, you will experience that you are less stressed in every part of your life. Doing sports produces a relaxation response that serves a positive distraction, which will help you to elevate your mood and keep depression at bay. So make yourself and your surrounding a favor and go workout, nobody wants to be accompanied by a grumpy-cat. 

#3. Want Energy? Workout:

You might be surprised now, but when you pop in your day with a 30 minute workout routine, you can change your whole day. Even if you are tired after your workout, you will recognize that you will be more energized for the rest of the day as endorphins are released into your bloodstream during your exercising. (Don't get me wrong, this will also only work if you get enough sleep, to be understood.) 

Not only will exercising in the morning affect that particular day, in longer term it will also help you to accomplish daily tasks easier (like climbing stairs, carrying groceries etc.). If you ever come up with the excuse ''No I don't want to exercise, I am way too tired...'', let me tell you this: you will manage to do the best workouts when you start tiredly. I already experienced this myself, when I was really tired at the beginning of the my gym-session, I did the best routines ever and lifted even heavier, and of course I felt even more energized AFTER my workout routine. 

#4. Everybody has time for fitness:

What in your opinion is better: Staying at home watching TV, or working out? You should start to use your time wisely. Even if you have kids, take them to a park, bike rides or take them to a swimming-bath. Not only will you spend some quality time with your kids, you also worked out. And if you have a baby or toddler, well buy a bicycle trailer and your baby can enjoy the ride. You are working the whole day and don't want to hit the gym after 6 p.m? Why don't you prepare your food and workout during lunch-break, instead of going to a restaurant? This doesn't have to be an hour, 30 minutes are already better than spending your lunch-break in a restaurant or lounge. You know, even vacuuming or cleaning the house can be exhausting, if not, buy some wrist-or ankle-weights and make this your workout routine.

#5. You can build relationships:

You know,when they say ''couples that workout together, stay together'' they are totally right. And this doesn't have to be a 'love'-couple, it can also be just two friends working out. It is way more fun if you workout with a partner than on your own, expect your partner keeps chatting all the time and distracts you from working out. Then you might consider another gym-buddy. If you don't have that much time to see other friends and workout, combine this. Meet them for tennis, or a bike ride or even for a swim? 

#6. Keep diseases at bay: 

Research found out that exercising can help prevent heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, bone loss, and loss of muscle tissue or mass. It also helps to ease some aspects of the aging process...ladies. It's not a secret that sports does your body good, such as strengthening the muscles and joints and reduce your odds of having aches and pains most adults have.

#7. Give your heart a pump:

Exercising not only reduce the risk of heart diseases or strokes, it also creates a stronger heart: Your heart and cardiovascular system will function more effectively, the heart will build up less plaque, which results in a more efficient pump. When your heart becomes stronger, it pumps more blood per beat so your heart rate is lower. 

#8. You can eat more: 

The more muscles you build the more calories you burn. Because muscles need the most calories, your metabolic rate will also increase, meaning that you burn more calories while exercising. So cheating with a cookie or a piece of chocolate once in a while isn't going to throw you back. I am NOT saying that you can eat what you want. But if you exercise regularly, you can enjoy such things in moderation. 

#9.Fitness boosts your performance: 

After some weeks of consistent exercise, you may feel that your clothes are fitting differently and you will see that your muscle tone has improved. What you also may notice is that you have stronger muscles, an increased flexibility or and overall improved performance, depending on what you worked out the past few weeks. Your muscles will work much more efficiently and you will gain a greater sense of endurance, plus, your reaction time and your balance will surely improve. 

#10. Weight loss? Who cares?:

Losing weight is one of the main reason why people start to workout, especially women. But it's certainly not the only benefit from exercising as we have learned so far. If you are a newbie in the world of fitness or sports, long-term goals of weight-loss may be discouraging, which is one of the main troubles. If people don't see results after 1 or 2 weeks they simply give up and try something new. If you feel concerned, you may consider thinking about the level of functioning in the activities of daily living. This can serve as the motivation to keep you going back for more. 

So whatever your goal might be when you start exercising, don't make it your only goal. Why don't you just strive to feel better, have more energy, be less stressed? You should notice the small things that exercising will bring you, rather than hanging yourself up on the narrow goal of a scale-number. 

Make smaller goals , which are easier for you to achieve, and then set new ones. This will keep you even more motivated. Believe me...

Stay healthy and start NOW.