Many people describe being tired, hitting that mid-day lull, or falling asleep on the couch by 9pm. The solution to being tired? Do more…..exercise.
It sounds counter-intuitive, but exercising regularly will increase energy and reduce fatigue. Research studies and personal testimony will verify it.
When my third child came a long I hit the usual and expected wall of fatigue and reduced energy that seeped into all aspects of my life. Having gone through this twice already, I was ready for it (sort of). I had preemptively invested in some workout equipment to turn my garage into a mini-gym so that I could conveniently work out a couple minutes a day, but almost every day but I didn’t have to drive anywhere. Often I would take the kids out with me to ‘work out’ with me. Watching a 2 year old do pushups is amazing!!
True to the studies that show that 20 minutes of low to moderate intensity activity a few times a week improved energy in as little as four weeks, I showed an increase and maintenance in my energy levels that I hadn’t seen with the other two kids.
As Tim Church, a professor at Louisiana State University’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center says “it helps you sweat out the mayonnaise”. What he really means it improves how well your body operates on a cellular level at taking energy from food sources (helps your body use sugar).
Exercise also increases the size and number of mitochondria – the powerhouse of the cell that gives you energy.
So get moving – doing anything from hiking, biking or strength training to improve energy and make the best of your day! It doesn’t matter what kind of exercise you do, as long as you like it and do it regularly!
– Dr. Rob Green