Run More, Do More
Taken December 11, 2022
The lens through which people view activities involving exercise is particularly interesting. For the most part, people's general disposition on the matter is that it is arduous and takes away from their allotment of energy throughout the day. They also believe that it is inherently painful and unfulfilling. This sentiment is akin to saying that eating fruits and vegetables can be considered unhealthy, a notion found in various internet content campaigns. It is important to bring to light the truth of what results from adopting a lifestyle that involves exercise.
Generally, I believe it is understood that the heart is the muscle and organ that oversees regulating the supply of energy components to the bloodstream, which then disperses to the rest of the body. When people partake in cardiovascular exercise, pushing their hearts to higher stress levels taxes the heart muscle, leading to fatigue throughout the day. If compared to a muscle in the body, once an individual exercises muscles like their arms, they find that for the rest of that day, their arm will not be able to hold the same amount of weight as before. Once the arm muscle recovers, the person exercising will find that their muscle strength and endurance have increased. Essentially, you sacrifice feeling good for a day to improve your overall threshold and baseline of strength. Through my experience, this process holds true for the heart as well. After spending long periods of time taxing your heart, baseline energy readily available for expenditure increases.
People have a limited time allotment for participating in leisurely activities. I initially tried to incorporate things like watching movies and reading during my lower-intensity moments of exercise. After a while, when running became easy enough, I started associating my runs with times when I listen to an audiobook; after a few months, minutes of running would go by without me even noticing. It does, however, come with a bit of danger, as I also became so comfortable listening to entertainment and zoning out that I was hit by a car. I did not suffer any real injuries, but it scared me for sure. Exercising had now turned into something that both educates me and maintains my body's health and structure.
Exercise also leads people to adopt better habits once they start paying attention to their performance. After spending enough time exercising, monotony sets in, and naturally, people will start wanting to pay attention to their performance to create some obstacles. This will then spur you to do a little bit of research to see if there’s anything you can do to improve. If you possess any habits that might be hindering your progress, you will suddenly find the urge to stop them to further improvements. After a while, you will find yourself eating differently, spending your time differently, and even sleeping more.
Finally, there is the fact that you will find yourself looking better. I know there is a sentiment that beauty is subjective, but I have never heard of anyone complaining about getting in better shape. Your muscles will be more defined, your skin will be brighter, and your beautiful facial features will come to light. You will start to garner more attention from the opposite sex, and hey, you might even garner a little more respect from your family. That’s right; there is a cold hard truth you will learn with respect to pretty privilege. It’s a real thing. I know this because my transformation was drastic, and my life experience has changed to an insane extent. Hopefully, after reading this blog, you just jog for thirty seconds; that’s where I started, and now I run for miles. I highly recommend it.