‘Health’, let’s take a moment and look at this word, particularly those first four letters that spell “heal’. That tells us what being in good health means, it is having unabated ability to heal.
That healing process within you happens with your approval. You give your body approval to heal by providing it with all that is required for the process. Without this provision your healing system is deficient. When this deficiency is prolonged it progresses to disharmony of function which in turn opens the door to malfunction and disease.
Consistent healing is necessary because your body is continually breaking down and needs to continually rebuild. There’s a constant cycle of repair, growth, and renewal occurring. To help the process run efficiently there are three primary areas to consider. These are a healing diet, healing sleep, and healing exercise.
There’s an article in More of You about sleep- ‘Sleep – What To Do When You Need Better And More Sleep’, 24 May 2019. Diet and foods will be covered in future posts. This post, ‘Using Your Body to Heal Your Body’, introduces you to the concept that exercise should be used as a healing modality. It’s a different mindset, a mind that truly values the preciousness of health. I hope you enjoy reading it.
The Healing Benefits Of The Right Exercise
Here’s just some of the many ways exercise helps to establish a healing environment in your body.
• Exercise has a major influence upon the reduction of fat levels and the prevention of the storage of excess fat
• Exercise strengthens your heart muscle
• It helps to provide protection from arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries)
• It lowers hypertension and maintains your blood pressure at a healthy level
• Being active improves your bloods ability to transport oxygen
• Exercise is used to keep insulin at a healthy level
• It keeps hormones at a healthy level
• Exercise helps your body to flush out cellular debris, eliminate waste, and detoxify
• Exercise is essential to keep your bones strong and prevent any bone loss
• It keeps muscle cells healthy, influences new muscle growth, and sustains lean muscle mass
• It is important for a healthy immune system
• And it regulates your nervous system
• It helps the regulation of your body temperature
• It helps you to tolerate extremes in temperature
• Exercise favourably influences the functioning of the digestive processes
• It strengthens the respiratory system
• It increases vitality
• You can see the healing benefits of exercise on the surface because it firms and smooths your skin
• Exercise enhances mental wellbeing
• And relieves stress
• It increases resilience, both physical and mental
• It instils a sense of self control and the ability to achieve
• Regular exercise helps you to experience a sense of wonder and joyfulness
• It improves memory and mental skills
• And exercise is important so you can live agelessly and for longer
Before we continue further there’s something that will help your understanding that I’d like to explain.
Insight -What is wellbeing?
Many people struggle to define wellbeing. Often they use the words health and wellbeing interchangeably, but this serves to confuse the issue. Some professionals say wellbeing is an undefinable quality, but I do not consider that’s the case at all.
As a health practitioner my familiarity within this area allows me a deeper insight into the world of health and wellbeing. I can assure you that they are two distinct entities, here’s how I define them.
Health is having the unabated ability to heal. When this ability is weakened, or disrupted, dysfunction occurs. If this dysfunction is suddenly severe, or it’s prolonged, sickness and disease may follow.
Wellbeing is broader in scope. It is the harmonious integration of the mind, soul, spirit, and the body.
Health and wellbeing have a symbiotic relationship, when health suffers, wellbeing is impacted. When wellbeing suffers, health is jeopardised.
Wellbeing is what you are (a ‘well-being’), health is what makes you.
I hope that helps to bring clarity to this issue. Now, let’s return to the theme of this post.
When you use your body to heal your body there is a noticeable positive impact on your wellbeing, not only on your health. It instils a sense of self control and the ability to achieve. Memory and mental skills are improved. And because wellbeing is so favourably enhanced you feel more alive, you live with a keen sense of interest, wonder, and joy. Life has purpose. Everything makes you feel connected. There’s no missing pieces.
This is the manifestation of the harmonious relationship between your mind, soul, spirit, and body. And you need good health so you can have good wellbeing. Poor health just gets in the way.
The right exercise not only favourably impacts upon health but also upon wellbeing. Perhaps you’re beginning to comprehend how exercise is a powerful tool. When you take charge and have control over your healing, by using exercise, diet, and sleep, in the right way, there are no limits.
In this article I’ve used the term ‘the right exercise’. I do not mean to infer that there are wrong exercise methods, it’s just that there are methods that have a profound influence on healing the body.
So, what is the exercise you should do?
The very best method of using your body to heal your body I’ve come across, is the exercise of Tai Chi. Regular practice of the Tai Chi form and associated exercises has a profound nourishing and rejuvenating effect on both health and wellbeing.
I don’t have personal experience of the practice of yoga. People tell me it’s beneficial, and if what I’ve read about it holds true, yoga could be worth looking into to. But my long experience as a tai chi practitioner and instructor, combined with my work as a health therapist, affords me a unique vision into the marvel that is tai chi. Here are just some of the benefits to health and wellbeing that I’ve discovered within this art.
• Release of tension in mind and body
• Calms an agitated nervous system
• Stimulates a dull nervous system
• Instils a feeling of calmness
• Mindfulness
• Circulation is improved
• Benefits to respiratory function
• Modulates the appetite
• Benefits digestive health
• Helps to flush out systemic debris and accumulated waste
• Enhances the health and appearance of the skin
• Balances the hormonal system
• Joint flexibility is improved
• Improves balance
• Ease of motion
• Physically strengthening
• Helps to control weight levels
• Increases awareness of self, others, and your surroundings
• The routines with a partner build resilience against, and the ability to adapt to, perceived threats
• Heightens sensory perception
• Improves mental acuity
• Self-expression
• Self-appreciation
And the list goes on.
Is tai chi for everyone? Absolutely, yes. I’d love to see everyone use tai chi for their health, wellbeing, and longevity. Will everyone do tai chi? Unfortunately, no.
I suggest you make a list of exercises, read about the different methods, watch some videos (you’ll find every imaginable exercise on You Tube). Then try the ones that hold appeal. There is a class out there that you will enjoy and get the benefit from.
And why not mix things up a bit, use a variety of methods for your personal exercise plan, and see how that works for you.
Exercise is essential. It keeps you strong and fit. And with the right exercise you will be using your body to heal your body. Sounds good to me.
Yet, this is not the full package. There’s an additional approach to exercise that works wonders for health and longevity. It’s complimentary to what you’ve just read, but that’s for the next post.
More of You’s Takeaways
• You understand the difference between health and wellbeing.
• The exercise you do should serve to heal your body.
• Also, it should enhance your sense of wellbeing.
• The concept of using your body to heal your body places exercise in a new light.
• All you have to do is, do it.
New to More of You? Then Please Take a Moment to Read This
To ensure good health and a long lifespan, as a first step there’s something that is important for you to do. Please read the series ‘A Smouldering Adversary’ – Parts One to Seven ….. They were first articles I wrote for More of You.
It will open your eyes to, and impress upon your mind, the recent findings about the dangers of a damaging silent assassin that could well be lurking within you. It erodes health, underlies the majority of disease processes, and accelerates ageing. All of us need to be vigilant in regard to it and take measures to keep it at bay because its destructive potential is unprecedented among bodily processes.
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Responsibility And Liability
The content within this blog is gathered from various reputable sources and authorities. Information is re-presented by the author, with the intention of making it available to, accessible to, and readily understood by everyone.
The author does not make any claim of the authenticity, or benefit, of any of the content. It is for the reader to make their own informed decision regarding the potential for personal use of this material.
The author is not engaged in rendering medical, health, or any other kind of personal professional services through this blog. If the reader has health concerns they should decide if it warrants a consultation with his or her medical, health, or other competent professional, before adopting any of the suggestions in the writings of this blog, or drawing inferences from them.
The author specifically disclaims all responsibility for any liability, or risk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents within this blog.
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