Do You Over Exercise?
Researchers have identified this thing called “over-exercise.” And trust me I’ve been there! Far too many women operate under the assumption that more exercise is better. But it is not. When it comes to exercise and movement, the body has its natural limits and it will eventually hit a wall!
When we over-exercise, we move the body into a STRESS RESPONSE. The physiologic stress response means that the body is in a state of sympathetic nervous system dominance, which yields an increased output of both cortisol and insulin. Both of these are fat storing hormones. These two hormones when secreted in excess, signals the body to store weight, store fat, and not build muscle.
Can you believe that we can literally create the opposite effect of what we want from exercise? Over-exercising artificially pushes the bodies past our own natural limits.
On top of over-exercising, if you’re doing exercise that you “hate” or that feels like a burden, you can create the same physiologic stress response with the same unwanted chemical cascade that ends up taking you down the wrong metabolic road. The body will not adapt well and will keep and store fat.
The main point here is to include exercise in your daily life. Do the activities you enjoy most: walk, dance, swim, ride your bicycle, yoga, do any kind of movement that gives you pleasure. Take a hike with your dog, just find any kind of movement that makes you feel happy. Use exercise to feel alive.
Pleasure is the key changing the body and to stimulating the parasympathetic “relaxation” response in the body. When the body feels relaxed, it will then finally physically respond to your attempts!
Tania Atkin