Wednesday 28 March 2012

Movement - the 5th Life Principle

We all have a body and in most cases we can move. It has tremendous benefit, if we tune into what movement is right for us. It helps the heart work better, it helps to detoxify the body, it aids digestion, repair, it helps keep us moving!

Movement helps -
Breathing - If you are seated most of the day the tendency is to breath with your shoulders and chest predominately, and you will be getting only a fraction of the oxygen you need for your to cells to work optimally. Moving regularly can help your abdominal diaphragm (main muscle for breathing and stability) work better, which aids with digestion, detoxification, and blood flow.

The biological oscillators – Brain, heart, small intestine. These vital organs work like 3 pendulums, entraining each other and when all are in good order they work in synchronicity. Exercise helps to balance the use of the brain (working)with the pumping of the heart (moving), and the small intestine (digestion and breathing).

The pumps – pelvic floor, abdominal muscles, diaphragm. Exercise also helps to keep these 3 pumps working, allowing the flow of message down your spine and around our nervous system, stabilising and allowing intense heavy lifting, and helping with the control of elimination.

Types of exercise fall into two categories
Working in exercises - These help to redistribute energy from tight muscles, overactive organs to areas of low energy in the body. They help us feel energised and balanced. Examples of exercise that uses working in exercise - Yoga, slow walking, tai chi, qi gong, stretching. Use these type of exercises when you feel tired are stressed, and to aid digestion immediately after a meal.

Working out exercises - These are exercises that break the body down, in order that it can rebuild itself stronger to move more powerfully, quickly or efficiently. They include sporting activities, weight training, running, cycling.

If you overdo the working out exercises you will not feel the benefits of movement as I have discussed above, although you may look good, you won't feel that way.
Take time each morning to take your waking heart rate (whilst still in bed) for 1 week to get an average. If your waking heart rate is 5 or above its average on any day, only perform working in exercise on that day. By performing this simple daily check, you will get all the benefits and non of the pain of exercise.

1 comment:

  1. The effectiveness of an abdominal Exercise device on the abdominal region is a lot less than 1 would believe, in reality the effects of abdominal exercises are far less than that of walking, jogging or cycling for a similar level of perceved effort.

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