Exercise…during Corona
I love science and when there is scientific evidence about an aspect of health, I feel it’s worth writing about it.
This week’s @newscientist New - yes I love this magazine too, tells us that strength training, twice a week, will add years to our lives.
Years back, the emphasis was on aerobic exercise but today weight training seems to trump it, with the following benefits:
- Increasing our metabolic rate, burning calories for long after we finish the training
- Reducing body fat and cholesterol levels
- Glucose control and improving insulin sensitivity, hence great for diabetes type 2
- Lowers blood pressure and risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer
- Helps maintain and build denser bones
Combine that with walks every day and you are a winner!
However..if you suffer, like me, with an autoimmune condition, be very, very careful. I am currently in the midst of the most severe uveitis attack I’ve ever had; in the past when I have had milder attacks, corticosteroids for a month with long walks every day would do the trick. For my current attack however, the course of steroids is going to take months. So, I still go for my daily walks but I have now added 20mins of weight training or yoga a couple of times per week.
We are all individuals and we need to work out our own triggers, and we all need to rest, sleep well, meditate, avoid our own food intolerances, and most importantly eliminate all physical, emotional and spiritual stresses.
An autoimmune attack during Corona lockdown is obviously not ideal, so we all have to do our best to avoid a flare up, and to manage them as best as we can if they happen! To all other sufferers, my prayers are also with you!
