5 Things That Could Be Holding You Back From Your Yoga & Fitness Goals
Cover Photo By Pixabay
A fit and healthy body is its own reward. Especially in these challenging times. Not only does a lean, healthy body help you to feel confident, mobile and agile, it also ensures that your immune system is at the top of its game. Ready to fight off the infections that could render you unable to be all that you can be at work, at home and in your fitness and leisure pursuits. Being in good health and fitness can even help us in our work and studies! Studies show that regular exercise helps to increase blood flow to the brain, encouraging the production of new brain cells (especially in the hippocampus which is critical to learning).
At a time when we’re all thinking a little harder about our health and wellbeing, many of us are leaning harder than ever on our asanas and our workouts in the gym to bring us health, wellbeing, and cognitive prowess. However, despite our efforts and diligence, we can sometimes find ourselves getting in our own way. We need to be cognizant of the barriers that can stand between us and our yoga or gym goals. Only when we take the time to acknowledge and understand them can we eliminate them and achieve feats that we never thought ourselves capable of.
Let’s take a look at the things that could be holding you back, and what you can do about them...
Stress
Exercise (and yoga in particular) is one of the most effective ways there is to relieve the quotidian stress that we accumulate day-to-day. However, if your exercise regimen is your only weapon in the battle against stress, you may find yourself outmatched. Cumulative stress can build up day-by-day, and week-by-week. And when this happens you may feel like you’re fighting your way down the path to fitness with one hand tied behind your back.
Stress can be good for us in small enough does. It can prevent us from becoming complacent. It can help us to draw on reserves of energy and inspiration that we never knew we had. It can bring out the best of us at work, at home and in our other pursuits. However, when we face stress on a daily basis it can become chronic, and this takes a toll on our bodies and minds.
When we’re under constant stress it triggers the body’s inflammatory response. While this is a normal part of the healing process when we are injured, chronic inflammation can make us vulnerable to some of our most dangerous chronic illnesses including diabetes, heart disease and certain forms of cancer. Moreover, when we’re producing large volumes of the stress hormone cortisol, our bodies store more fat around the abdomen. If you have a stressful job, and find that you struggle to shift your tummy weight no matter how much you exercise, this may be the reason why. Worse still, cortisol causes us to not only store subcutaneous fat beneath the skin but visceral fat around the organs. Not only is this much harder to burn, it can also create a host of health problems.
Finally, while exercise can help us combat stress, a stressful day can rob us of the desire and motivation to exercise, result in a vicious cycle that further prevents you from getting the results you deserve.
So, aside from your exercise and yoga endeavors, how can you take steps to mitigate stress? As you might imagine, we have a few suggestions;
Reduce your caffeine intake. Replace your steaming cup of joe with green tea or decaff coffee.
Practice mindfulness meditation every day. It only takes 5 minutes but can significantly reduce stress levels.
Avoid processed foods, especially processed meats. Not only are they classed as Group 1 Carcinogens by the World Health Organization, they are also loaded with sodium which can exacerbate stress and dehydrate your body.
Laugh! Laughter floods the brain with the same feel good chemicals as exercise. So start your day by watching some comedy or relaxing with your pets at play.
There are also lots of supplements that may be effective in helping your body to combat the symptoms of stress. These include; valerian root, green tea extract, kava kava and lemon balm.
Taking as many of the above steps as possible can help to reduce your stress levels and ensure that your body and mind are primed to achieve your goals unencumbered by the effects of stress.
Lack of sleep
Speaking of stress, when you’re battling against stress and anxiety all day, every day it can wreak havoc with your sleeping patterns. Furthermore, if you end your day with your face in your phone, laptop, tablet or other device, all that blue light and EMF won’t be doing you any favors either. Using such devices before bed can make your body produce less of the sleep hormone melatonin, throwing your body clock off-kilter and preventing you from getting a good night’s sleep.
And sleep is critically important to achieving your health and fitness goals.
While we’re asleep our bodies are hard at work rebuilding and repairing muscles and other tissues that are damaged (intentionally) in exercise. So that they can grow back stronger, leaner and more flexible. Good sleep is also crucial to a healthy metabolism that burns more calories even when you’re at rest.
If you’re struggling to nod off at night, you won’t be able to get the most out of your fitness regimen unless you take active steps to help you relax. One of the most effective ways to do this is to take a hot bath an hour before bed time. This will lower your body’s core temperature so that when you get into bed you’re less likely to be kept awake by feeling too hot, sweaty and uncomfortable. For an even more relaxing experience use a bubble bath scented with jasmine or lavender which are proven to aid relaxation.
Allergies
Many of us are unaware just how damaging allergies can be to our fitness regimen, or how we can develop food allergies we were not aware of, even in adulthood. Allergies, especially food allergies, can become detrimental to your workouts and your overall health unless taken in hand.
An allergic reaction is an immune response to a food that the body believes is harmful. It can result in a range of symptoms including itchy skin, watery eyes, chest pains, coughing, weaker pulse, and even trouble breathing. None of which is conducive to a good workout.
If you have noticed any of the above symptoms but struggled to find a reason behind them, you should look into allergy testing options from Allergy Insider. The better you know your allergenic triggers, the better placed you are to prevent them from interfering with your workouts.
Time management
This section was originally going to be about diet. After all, healthy bodies are made in the kitchen as much as they’re made in the gym or the yoga studio. However, the truth is that the reason many of us fail to get the nutrition our bodies need and deserve is invariably more about time management than discipline. We’re rarely tempted by coffee shop pastries or the sugary, salty and fatty treats of the workplace vending machine because we’re greedy or ill-disciplined. It’s more a matter of them being in the right place at the right time when our blood sugar gets low. And we haven’t had the opportunity to prepare a healthier alternative.
Time management, or lack thereof, can impact on your day in a number of ways… none of them good for your fitness goals. It can prevent you from finding the time to cook and prepare the healthy, nutritious meals that will contribute to your gains in your hatha or in the gym. Meal planning and meal prep can make the business of nutrition much easier. Dedicating a little time to it at the start of the week can ensure that you always have something healthy on your plate, as well as nourishing yet satisfying snacks to tide you over when hunger strikes.
Moreover, a lack of time management can also exacerbate issues with stress. It can make us feel less in control of our day, and as though we’re constantly reacting instead of getting the chance to be proactive and take control of our days.
If you find that time management is an issue in your life, there are a plethora of digital apps which can help you to maximise your time, better plan your day and prevent those stressful moments where it feels like you’re dashing around like a state of panic. However, there’s really no substitute for setting your alarm clock for an hour earlier, enjoying a leisurely nutritious breakfast
Complacency
Finally, while we should celebrate our successes in our yoga classes and the gym, we must also guard against complacency. Our workouts should always challenge us if we’re to achieve our goals. And if they fail to do this, we can become lulled into a sense of complacency. We can stop pushing ourselves and find frustration when we fail to achieve our fitness goals. When you feel like your asanas and exercises are getting a little too easy, you know it’s time to move onto something more challenging!
