Client Exercises Her Way Back to Greater Energy & Vitality

My last corporate job had me working 50-60 hours a week, and in the end, I had a catatonic event and it forced me to resign. It was my health and wellbeing or something worse. I had suffered a ruptured Baker’s cyst in my leg, high blood pressure and all the other health issues associated with long-term stress.

Things Started Going Swimmingly

So, I started swimming again. Over the last 30 years, I have been reasonably consistent with exercise with some breaks; but this last one was the longest—four-and-a-half years.

It was like my body had held a memory of it, and it did not take me long to get back in the rhythm. I did a mixture of breaststroke, backstroke and freestyle followed by a whole lot of water walking and jogging in different styles to unfurl my poor aching body—physically, chemically and emotionally.

I have been swimming 3-4 times a week consistently for the last two and a half years now. My message regarding the benefits of exercise is about not punishing yourself! The “old me” would have been looking to at least match the same number of lengths or better it from the session before.

The “new me” listens to my body and when I’ve had enough, I’ve had enough. Every session still entails a few lengths of huff and puff to get the lungs working and metabolic rate up, and every session includes some wonderfully relaxing, swooning, soothing strokes, walks and mermaid-y whimsical fancy!

I think, “so what if I do not match that previous number; I’m here, I’m moving and even more wonderful is the feeling of overall expansion and wellness”. I never beat myself up for not matching that number from the session before and I never go home and sabotage myself further by eating a bag of chips in front of Netflix.

There are obvious physical benefits from regular exercise and my chiropractor says that the inflammation in my body is finally subsiding.

Forging Friendships

I also want to mention the other benefits asides from the physical. You would doubt that you could meet any people at the pool given it is a sport where you spend most of your time with your head down in the water, but I have built some wonderful friendships. These friends include everybody from the young engineer half my age, the HR manager, the real estate agent, and the old, retired fellow.

We laugh, we talk, we share ideas, we check on each other, and so the “going for a swim” has become far more than just getting the body moving—but building friendships, networks and having a few laughs.

I met one of the ladies again at the chiropractors’ office, and we both looked at each other and said, “Are you from the pool? I didn’t recognise you with your clothes on!” Then the whole office burst out laughing.

It is this laughter, connection and caring that allows your body to release a whole lot of wonderful and powerful chemicals (serotonin, endorphins, etc). These “happy” hormones lift your mood, help with pain and stress, and importantly, build your immune system.

Make It Fun

When you are planning your exercise look to make it fun, something you will enjoy so that you can easily maintain the consistency of attendance. Take care of the words you use on yourself. Refrain from words like “regime”, “workout” or “bootcamp”, as these all sound punishing and immediately, I feel resistance.

If you feel any kind of resistance, it’s just going to be hard work—and completely defeat the purpose of the exercise and you will not get all that you should from it.

Whether you exercise for 10 minutes or half an hour, just keep moving; but more importantly, keep enjoying it!