How is Week 3 treating you, Challenger?
I hope you are staying consistent and learning about your patterns which help you make more changes in the future. If you missed a day, NO worries. Get back at it and get.it.in. Get ‘er done.
I am thankful we embarked on this challenge during the summer. I don’t love the humidity but the long, warm days have encouraged me to make a workout fit into my day.

I wanted to address the role of exercise in weight loss during our challenge this month. Many of my clients want to learn how to eat better, how to feed their families better, how to choose a quality supplement, and, as you can imagine, how to loose weight.

When I ask my clients what is the number one thing that keeps them on track, exercise is the most common answer.
I see a lot of clients who were athletes when they were younger and never had to worry about their weight. I also see clients who work out regularly but as Father Time has marched on, their efforts are not yielding the same results. There are also clients who start working out with renewed vigor, but give up after a couple weeks because they aren’t seeing a change on the scale. So, can you really exercise yourself skinny? Not likely. Research supports changes in our food as being the biggest factor in weight loss. So why does everyone say exercise keeps them on track?

If you have read my blog before, you know I talk a lot about being L.E.A.N. LEAN is an acronym for the four pillars of health: Lifestyle, Exercise, Attitude, and Nutrition. The key to our health is keeping these in balance. It is really the key to weight loss as well. We might need to pay more attention to nutrition, but our daily lifestyle habits, our attitude management and regular exercise are also important. All four pillars play a role in weight loss, but most of my clients still think exercise is the one thing they MUST do in order to see a change on the scale.

Exercise:
•releases happy hormones.
•lowers stress levels.
•elevates energy levels.
•lubricates joints.
•increases blood flow.
•strengthens bones and muscles (including your heart).
•reduces inflammation.
•contributes to stable blood sugar levels.
•takes time to fit into your schedule (often healthy meal planning accompanies this habit).

No wonder my clients consider exercise an important pillar of health.

Due to all the physical and emotional benefits we receive from exercise, it can become that one habit which sets the tone for rest of your lifestyle choices.

You don’t want to waste a good workout on gummy bears, right! Ever have a crummy workout because you ate too much or not enough? Exercise can set the tone for our food choices. The quality & quantity of the food we eat is greatly enhanced and sustained when we move our body. A muscular body also burns more fat. Having the right body fat percentage for your body type is key to achieving health throughout a lifetime.

So, I’m not sure I answered the question of exercising yourself thin. The answer is really a “Yes, but not in the way you think.” Exercise alone won’t get you skinny. But exercise makes you healthy and LEAN in too many ways to ignore. So get moving, Challengers!

Next week we will talk about different types of exercise and which ones you should try. We are more than half way through July. Let’s finish strong!

Let us know – Why exercise is so important to your overall health? Leave a comment here.