Are you putting on weight? Does your day feel like a drag? Then, it’s time to add movement into your life. The human body is designed for movement. In the current times, many of us are leading sedentary lifestyles, and we don’t realize the negative effects of such a lifestyle till we get some health issues. It’s important to change this lifestyle because a sedentary lifestyle is one of the major causes of diseases like obesity, diabetes, high BP, etc. The first step you can take in this direction is to add movement into your life. I have been greatly benefitted by adding movement into my life. So, what are the benefits of movement, and how to incorporate it? In this blog, you will find answers to these questions. So, let’s get started.
2 instances that taught me the importance of movement
Many of us think – what’s the big deal about movement? And continue with our sedentary lifestyles. I, too, thought the same at some point in my life, but experience taught me how important movement is. I remember two instances that taught me the importance of movement.
The first incident was from my post-college days. Just after college was finished, I was happy thinking I got freedom – freedom to live life on my terms. I can wake up any time, and sleep anytime. I can watch TV in my bed, eat food anytime I want, and watch TV for hours. No rules! What freedom!
After months of enjoying this freedom, to my shock, I started putting on weight. It was never this way. I could eat whatever I wanted to and maintain my body. I was super thin, and I did not even think I could put on weight. But now, I started putting on weight. It’s because I did not have movement. In school and college, there was a lot of movement. I used to play tennis. But after college, I stopped playing tennis, and there is no movement at all. Lack of movement leads to weight gain.
Here is the second incident, which taught me the importance of movement. About 3 to 4 years back, I was writing the script for the “manasuki nacchindhi” movie – my directorial debut. I was very engrossed, involved, and consumed in writing this script. I would sit for hours and hours at a stretch without any kind of movement. I enjoyed this phase, but I was not moving much.
And after 8 months, I developed a very bad ache. It was hurting me badly, and I researched as to why this happened and how to solve it. I figured out that this is due to my continuous sitting for long hours.
These are the 2 instances that taught me the importance of movement in life.
How my back pain is healed with movement!
After I realized that my back pain was caused due to a lack of movement, I changed my working style. I am blessed with a beautiful 4-acre garden. Now, I started using it. Whenever I needed to think, I started going into the garden and walking. I got wonderful ideas when I walked in nature. I started using a standing desk. I consciously added a lot of movement to my working day. And you won’t believe it – my backache disappeared like magic in just 3 weeks.
Before making this change in my lifestyle, I did not realize that my backache was due to a lack of movement. I spent lots of money on various experts and tried many things to get rid of backache. But nothing worked. So, when I added movement, my backache was gone in just 3 weeks. I was amazed at the power of movement.
Power of movement:
Many of us underestimate movement. And because of our laziness, we get into a mode where there is not much movement in our lives. Laziness is a dis-ease. It restricts your creative flow and your passion for life. It is not the natural state of the human body. The human body is designed to move, be active, and be energetic. So, say goodbye to your laziness and embrace the movement.
7 Benefits of movement:
So, what are the benefits of movements? Here are 7 benefits.
- When you add lots of movement to your daily life, you radiate freshness and become dynamic.
- Your blood flows well, and you feel energetic.
- You feel great about yourself and life.
- Your thoughts become streamlined, and your emotions become stable. When your thoughts change, your destiny changes because we create our situations and circumstances based on our thoughts.
- Your health improves.
- You become younger.
- It helps in weight loss.
Movement is not just for weight loss. It is a game-changer, and it transforms the whole life. It is a huge lifestyle change. The best part is it is simple and easy. It does not need any equipment or special conditions. So, how to add movement in daily life?
10 tips to add movement into your life
Here are 10 tips that help you move more.
- After every 1 hour of sitting, walk around for 5 minutes. When you do this the whole day, you end up moving for an hour.
- When you are watching TV, walk around during ads.
- Once in a while, try doing your household chores.
- Now and then, do simple exercises at your desk.
- Use a standing desk for work and incorporate body stretches and neck movements.
- Play with your children. It is a lot of fun.
- Walk to your nearby grocery store instead of using a vehicle.
- Park your car further down and walk.
- Take the stairs instead of the lift.
- Design your kitchen in such a way that you need to move a lot.
These are some tips to add more movement.
As shown in the “move it” song from Madagascar, let’s move it. This song is so inspiring and brings me a smile. Let’s move, move, move. Yay. The more we move, the healthier we become. Don’t underestimate this simple practice. Grab every opportunity that makes you move because our health and happiness are dependent on movement.
Happy moving!