Do you know that feeling you get after exercise – you’re fresh out of the shower and ready to face your day? There you are, the buzz after exercise, glowing, filled with energy and a can-do attitude. Well, sometime during the day, some of that energy depletes; vanishes.

Could actions you take after exercise limit the overall benefits of a good workout session? And even more importantly – how can you maintain your buzz all the way to your next workout? Read this article to see how you could make the most use of all that energy you generated…

Benefits of Exercise

Exercise has several benefits to our body – physically, mentally and emotionally.

Some physical benefits are:

1. Exercise means exertion by the muscles, which you need to keep them healthy. When you don’t exercise muscle regularly, it becomes unhealthy. Muscles are designed for movement.
2. Exercise increases your blood flow. Why is this important?
   • Well, your body is designed for blood to be in constant flow rather than static.
   • This means that blood is always moving from one part of the body to another. Blood is a transport medium, but blood also contributes to a force with which organs like the heart and blood vessels work.
   • The blood pressure moves blood around, which allows organs to receive all they need to function while getting rid of waste products from their activities and cleaning out the blood. 
3. Exercise improves your bowel function, reducing the risk of constipation.
4. Regular exercise helps you breathe better. Your breathing muscles get stronger, and if you suffer from conditions like asthma, regular moderate exercise can also improve your lung capacity.
5. Increased blood flow to the organs means the skin also gets benefits – many people experience clearer skin once they start regular exercise.

So these are some of the physical benefits from exercise only by the exertion effects on the tissue.

Of course, a well-functioning body will make you well and feel good – but that alone doesn’t explain why you have a buzz after exercise. 

No, that extra juice comes from specific hormones your body produces from exercise.

“When you exercise, brain chemicals we call endorphins, dopamine, adrenaline and endocannabinoid increase in your bloodstream.

These chemicals help create positive emotions, such as feelings of

• happiness
• exhilaration
• confidence
• a calm, relaxed and positive mood that we experience post-exercise.

Exercise also helps in our mental function:

• clear thinking
• improved memory
• your concentration and mental focus are better
• reducing feelings of tension or anxiety

You have to admit there is an abundance of gains that your workout delivers.

Building on Your After-Exercise Gains

So how can we maintain this buzz and use our exercise gains well after the workout?

Taking steps to counter the ebb 

Well, here are 4 simple ways to ensure this:

Combat Stress

You know that as you enter your day, something or the other is going to happen that stresses you out.

 When you get stressed, you become anxious. Stress goes with your body producing another hormone, cortisol – which can affect your blood sugar and trigger emotional, impulsive eating.

So, the best thing to do is to work out how to avoid, overcome or manage your stress. 

• Taking breaks from work, even 5-10mins away from your workspace or just away from your computer to recharge, can help
• Practising meditation to relax your mind and body

Keep Moving

Next, take Frequent small Movements throughout your day.

Yes, a mini-workout after your main workout.

If you can, take the stairs, not the lift. 

Set a timer that gets you up and out of your chair every hour at work. 

Use that time to stretch, get a glass of water or use the toilet – these will help to maintain the buzz after exercise going all day.

Hydrate

Another great tip is to drink enough water! Yes, you’ve heard it before – but only because it’s essential: being dehydrated contributes to headaches, irregular bowel movements and worsens stress.

Also, being dehydrated can increase sugar cravings making you reach for less healthy choices. This could undo the effect of your workout and contribute to depleting your energy!

Recovery

Lastly, get enough sleep.

What’s the point of getting a good workout if you don’t back it up with enough rest?

In other words, rest and work out are necessary parts of the overall wellness equation.

Poor sleep is also associated with stress and high cortisol levels, which contribute to poor eating habits, mood swings, irritability and reduced motivation to exercise.

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So just remember, you can make a lot more of your workout gains by taking steps to maintain them all day.

 Making these tips part of your regular routine can help keep you full of energy after exercise – providing the consistent energy you need for the next work out and maintaining a lifestyle of health and fitness.

What else would you add to the list??

Let us know in the comments section.

More Reading

• 5 Easy Cardio Workouts You Can Do at Home
• The Best 20 Ways to Fit Exercise into Your Daily Routine
• Maintaining Your Heart Health
• Your Skin – Why You Should Never Take It for Granted – Part II
• Top tips for overcoming Medication-Related Weight Gain
• The Mental Health Benefits of Exercise

Editing By AskAwayHealth

Disclaimer

All AskAwayHealth articles are written by practising Medical Practitioners on a wide range of health care conditions to provide evidence-based guidance and to help promote quality health care. The advice in our material is not meant to replace the management of your specific condition by a qualified health care practitioner.
To discuss your condition, please contact a health practitioner or reach us directly

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