Getting Stronger – Less Stress
Weight loss to Date -32.8lbs
Today I feel very strong, not just physically but in many aspects. I am learning the strength you gain when you convert your lifestyle is not just the weight you can lift. The lifestyle change strengthens your ability to withstand many forces. One force to deal with is the very impactful feeling of stress.
Stress as the Enemy
Stress is not supposed to be an enemy. We evolved stress to deal with life threatening situations. It has served us well in our species survival. Unfortunately these things that we evolved stress to deal with are no longer primary threats in modern life. Stress hormones being released into the body were originally a response mostly to a physical threat. A large predator was nearby, or we needed to hunt something dangerous. It helped our muscles exert maximum effort at critical times to escape or overcome some physical and life threatening event. It helped keep us alert and ready for fight or flight at a moments notice. Today however our bodies do not always know the difference between a threat from a Sabretooth Tiger and being stuck in traffic on a hot day on the way to the airport. The latter doesn’t allow us to burn off that stress so it often builds up in us. Stress is still a functional safety device our bodies have, but it is important to remember that it is not always being deployed how it was meant to be.
Ways to Deal with Stress
Right now there is a lot going on in my world. In days of past I dealt with this stress with an impulse to make things only worse. That impulse was to find something comforting to eat. Eating something that brought me some enjoyment was a way to divert that stress into something I perceive as positive. Right now though I have completely changed what my impulse is to deal with that stress. Today my response and desire was to go and do my 4km walk, and follow that up with some push ups and weightlifting. The difference is of course, that unlike overeating a bad food choice, exercise has made the stress better after it has been completed.
Some Weight Lifting this Afternoon
Energy to Deal with Stress Head On
We don’t fight sabretooth tigers anymore, but that doesn’t mean that legitimate stress doesn’t happen. When things do occur where you need be more active and engaged it makes such a difference to have that added energy and mobility. This is what I mean by building strength that is not just muscles. It is the strength to deal with what needs to be dealt with and not be impacted by the physical demands placed on you. Exercise doesn’t just help stress when it happens, it also prepares yourself to deal with it better in the future.
I am very pleased with my progress so far. I feel more prepared to take on whatever comes my way and feeling stronger is so many ways. My outlook for the future is getting more and more positive.
