The Truth About Exercise and Why Its Not Always Good for You!

Exercise is often regarded as a panacea for many things..."if you want to lose weight, you must exercise"; "if you want to get those feel good endoprhins racing, take some exercise"; "if you want to help with stress, you should take up exercise".

All of this may be true but there are times when exercise is NOT a good thing and should be undertaken with caution or proper supervision. A good example of this is stress. Although exercise is often promoted as a means to work off all your stress, physiologically exercise actually puts stress on your body.

What happens when you get stressed about something? You might start to sweat; your heart races; your blood pressure goes up; you breathe a little heavier....what happens when you exercise? You sweat, your heart pumps faster, you breathe harder. Physically, your body's response to exercise is exactly the same response to a stressful situation.

So if you are in a stressed or even 'distressed' state and this has been the case for a while, your body will have been placed under enormous pressure to maintain its equilibrium (also called homeostasis) throughout this period. If you then add exercise to the mix, the additional stress that exercise puts on your body may just push it to breaking point. Your immune system could shut down and make you susceptible to illness, your blood pressure may rise dangerously high and you may feel dizzy or nauseous because your heart is struggling to pump blood fast enough to your muscles and brain.

And for the guys wanting to pump iron and bulge those biceps, if you are stressed (either from work or even from a cardio workout), you will have cortisol - a stress hormone - pumping round your blood. Cortisol inhibits the production of testosterone - another key hormone that is needed for muscle growth. If you pump iron with cortisol in your blood, your ability to produce testosterone is limited and you'll therefore be wasting your effort to bulk up your muscles. So if you've just done an aerobic workout and stressed your body and then go into the weights room, you're not going to see as much progress as you think you should.

But.....I do NOT want to put anyone off exercise, especially aerobic exercise that helps to keep your heart & lungs healthy. In fact, as a personal trainer that's the last thing I want to do!

Exercise can be a great stress reliever and the perfect way to wind down after a day of frustration but if you are stressed - and by this I mean truly & physically stressed out - try and de-stress first with some relaxation and meditation, before placing your body under any more stress with 10km on the treadmill. And if you want to build bigger muscles, don't do any aerobic exercise in the same workout - or even on the same day - as a resistance workout.

And if all else fails and you are unsure when and how to exercise safely, consult a fully qualified and registered exercise professional.

Lea Woodward is a qualified personal trainer in the UK. She runs a health & fitness company, activOne, that provides personal training, massage therapy and training resources to other personal trainers see http://www.activone.co.uk

---

Stretching for Health

Lack of flexibility is now seen to be a major... Read More

Tour of Diet ? Cycling for Your Health

The last seven years, or so, at the Tour de... Read More

Keep Exercise Journals For Real Results

Always make sure to keep a detailed training journal. By... Read More

Sets And Reps - The High And Low Weight Workout

Big weights! Wicked pump! I always get caught between two... Read More

Exercise & Motivation, Part 2: Overcoming Inertia & Getting Started

In the first article in this series (http://tinyurl.com/8ztbo), we gave... Read More

Calf Cramps - How To Get More Gain For Less Pain!

I cannot imagine that there is anyone past the age... Read More

Life Walking: Dont Walk Just For Exercise - Change Your Life

"Life walking" is more than walking for exercise and fitness... Read More

Basic Abdominal Exercises

If it's six pack abs that you're after, daily abdominal... Read More

Planning An Exercise Program

When designing an aerobic or strength training exercise program, fitness... Read More

Why You Should Learn Tai Chi

Learning Tai ChiTai Chi combines movement, meditation and breathing, to... Read More

How to Find a Gym and Start Exercising

There is hardly a week that passes without an article... Read More

The Great Forgotten Exercise -- Parallel Bar Dips

When it comes to building lower pectorals, triceps and frontal... Read More

Do You Want To Be A Bodybuilding Champion ? The Power Behind The PEN!

IT ALL STARTED ON A TYPICAL NOVEMBER MORNING back in... Read More

Top 3 Back Pain Risk Factors

Lower back pain is an increasingly common problem in fact... Read More

Super Charge Your Metabolism

1. Cardio in Combination with Strength Training- If you need... Read More

Lance Armstrongs Training Tactics: #1 Rule - Greatness Needs NO Explanation!

Great endurance racers will tell you "Leave your egos at... Read More

Struggling To Keep Your Workout Schedule? So am I!

Sometimes following a fitness program or workout schedule is not... Read More

The History of Pilates ? It All Began With One Sickly Child

A look into the history of Pilates helps you understand... Read More

Metabolism: How to Increase Your Metabolic Rate?

Metabolism is a process by which the body burns the... Read More

4 Exercises That Will Help You Change Your Body Faster Than Any Other Exercises You May Have Tried

1. Lunges with a barbell. Properly executed, this exercise is... Read More

Exercise and the Time Clock

I have to admit that I sometimes find it amusing... Read More

Exercise and Heart Health: A Life Giving Marriage

Most people get their health out of a bottle these... Read More

Exercise And Stress

"Stress is when you wake up screaming and you realize... Read More

Sweating Vacation

It seems like everyone is concerned about putting on the... Read More

Easy and Effective Home Workouts

Many people think that creating a home workout gym is... Read More

How To Overcome Workout Plateaus

Humans are habitual. They strive on routine and rituals. While... Read More

Mom, How F.I.T.T. Is Your Workout?

Moms don't have the time or desire to mess around... Read More

After WLS: Walking for Wellness

Step for step, mile for mile, walking is the best... Read More

When Exercising Right Looks Wrong

For most of us we live in a black and... Read More

The Power Workout:

Scenario: I really want to get in shape, but I... Read More

Tone Up While at Work

I know better than anybody that sitting at a desk... Read More

Debunking Common Exercise Myths, Part 1

Myth #1: Heavy weights make you "bulky"Heavy weights typically do... Read More

Exercise Tips: Move Your Body - Boost Your Productivity

Do you find yourself setting a New Year's Resolution (every... Read More