The learning never ends, and neither does the search for knowledge. It pays to understand the ways of your body, so we are better guided on our path to a more energetic, pain-free life.

Repeated movement or action done continuously for 15 to 20 minutes is considered exercise. If you are thinking of joining a marathon, start training several months before the event. One simply cannot jump in and join the frenetic pace of runners. By forcing your body to adapt, you will cause more injury to yourself.

It is the general thinking that warm-ups are not as important as regular exercise but they are necessary. Warm-ups are designed to increase circulation and blood flow to your entire body. Simple brisk walking and slow running, body squats, jumping jacks, light aerobics and dancing qualify as warm-up workouts. Continue for three to five minutes until you are breathing heavily.

Cool-downs are just as important. A slow walk will do, along with simple stretching.

Do you know that an ice bath can help you get slimmer? So does a light workout right after a heavy exercise routine.

Extreme temperatures

Exposure to extreme temperatures, whether hot or cold, improves cell performance because it stimulates mitochondrial function. Cryotherapy can help optimize the burning of body fat by increasing brown adipose fat. Now we understand why spas have icy cold pools as well as steam rooms.

Moreover, this stimulates the production of norepinephrine in the brain, essential to focus, mood and attention, as well as the alleviation of pain. All that one needs is exposure to 4°C water for 20 seconds or 13.8°C cold water for two minutes or more.

There is a cold shock protein in the brain which is automatically triggered by exposure to cold. RBM-3 is activated by a simple drop in temperature of as little as 1.5°F. This suggests that cryotherapy could possibly have a neuroprotective benefit for the entire body.

Diets fail not only because of the lack of commitment from dieters. What dieters do not understand is that muscle burns seven times as many calories as fat. Even if you diet, if you don’t exercise, the weight loss will not be significant. The main problem is most likely the chosen diet; it creates hunger and slows down metabolism.

Dieters, listen up. You don’t need to feel hunger to losE weight. Feeling hunger doesn’t assure weight loss. In fact, it does the opposite—it causes you to have a bigger appetite. A diet that creates hunger is the wrong regimen. It means that your diet is imbalanced. When this happens, your body will go on survival mode. The result: a diet resisted by your body.

Studies have shown that the average person gains weight for every diet he or she is on. Worse, if weight loss occurs, it will be only temporary.

The only way to loss weight is to increase metabolism by burning calories through exercise and decrease the amount of food consumed. Follow these and there is no reason why you can’t reach your ideal weight.

This week’s affirmation: “I can do anything.”
Love and light!

Reference: natural health information articles on mercola.com