Mindful Body Awareness in Exercise

“A majority of injuries treated in physical therapy practice could have been prevented with proper form and technique.”

Exercise is Medicine

Regular physical activity is one of the most important things you can do for your health. Moreover, it is crucial to ensure that your body is strong and healthy enough meet the challenges that you set for it. Exercise and physical activity keeps our body limber and strong, and our minds sharp. The many benefits of Exercise include:    

Weight control

Stress Relief

Reduced Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Prevent, Reduce, and Control Inflammation

Decrease Type 2 Diabetes and Certain Metabolic Syndromes

Strengthens Immune System

Strengthens Bones and Muscles

Reduces Risk of Certain Cance

Improves Balance and Reduces Fall Risk

Improves Mood and Mental Health                                              

I am not telling you anything you haven’t heard before.

With the changes in our HealthCare Payment system, insurance costs continue to rise and out of pocket expenses have increased. One good thing coming out of this is that people are realizing that they need to take better care of themselves and exercise more. A-not-so-good consequence of this is that people often embark upon an exercise journey that might not be the best for them, and/or they take exercise advice from under-trained sources.

MINDFUL BODY AWARENESS                                                                                                                                                                                                            

EXERCISE is one of the BEST things you can and should do for yourself. And you should do it everyday, but you need to do it correctly for your individual needs. Prior to embarking on a new exercise journey, you should consult a medical professional such as your doctor or physical therapist, optimally both. You need to be aware of your own body and your optimal body alignment or posture. Make sure you learn the proper exercise technique and understand what the goal of each exercise is. Finally concentrate on yourself, your body, your exercise technique. Make sure you "feel it" in the correct places. Do not misinterpret the adage "no pain; no gain." Muscle activation and/or muscle "burn" should not be painful.

Look for someone who is educated, skilled, and experienced in the 1) physiologic processes of the body,  2) anatomy and physiology, 3) injury pathology and prevention, 4) Effects of illness or medications on exercise response, and 5) appropriate adaptation for age, conditions, and illness. Realize that certain medications change the way your body responds to exercise, and your exercise intensity may need to be adjusted, to prevent a potentially life-threatening response.

Use caution, however, and do not assume that just because someone has the degrees after his/her name that they have the knowledge and experience. Ask questions and research the person to whom you are entrusting your health.

When you are learning and participating in an exercise or exercise class, make sure you are performing each and every exercise with the correct technique. If working with a personal trainer, you want to make sure he/she stops, interrupts, and corrects your form if incorrect. Otherwise you are not only wasting your time and money, but you increase your risk of suffering an injury that may put you on the sidelines.

Just because you sweat doesn’t mean your exercise is effective.