Discussion What is the consensus for going to the gym/working out to help recovery?

[TheWorld'sLeftovers]

I have seen so many times that people will say "just go to gym."
Supposedly, it will make you feel better because a healthier body is a healthier mind.
Is this actually worth doing to help with recovery? Or is it just a crowd mentality/bandwagon thing?
Has anybody tried it? I would love to hear some stories. If anybody has any thoughts to share, that would be appreciated.

 

[timf]

There are a lot of exercise options that people can do by themselves. One might find in a gym culture those who might encourage as well as those who might intimidate. One cautionary not is to avoid signing any long term contracts.

 

[megantrevor]

I walk and exercise and even run but only on days I fell "normal". This helps me be happy for rest of the day. I also found out with addition to my medication it helps slow my anxiety as well. So I would recommend just working out in general. If you want to also just excuse by yourself. Unless your social and and looking for a sense of community a gym is a good place for that as well.

 

[ternox]

The gym didn't help me because I still believe that CTB is the only solution in my life, but I found a new hobby to distract myself a bit.

 

[FadingSunshine]

It's a great way to be proud of yourself, accomplish new achievements, and feel better about yourself. I started going as a mild form of self harm, I would go to the gym and just destroy my body as much as possible. Now I think it's the only thing keeping me alive, it's one of the only things that bring me joy.

 

[carac]

Different things can work for different people so it can be about finding what works for you personally. I think generally just getting your body moving is a good thing, some like yoga, others like running, even things like dancing can help a great deal. As for the gym I think it depends on firstly if you are comfortable with that sort of environment, unless you wanted to work out at home in privacy and whether that sort of things appeals to you.

 

[LaVieEnRose]

If we don't practice proper nutrition and exercise habits as much as possible, we are not doing all we can to feel better. And yes I know I'm a bit of a hypocrite saying that. Or maybe not since I'm not really looking to feel better.

 

[SexyIncél]

My understanding:

Often, we have bottlenecks. For some people at a given moment, exercise is a lynchpin to better health. Otherwise, you need to solve other things first. Once you accomplish those — ok, then let's reconsider whether exercise is a new bottleneck

We can search SaSu for things like "exercise". Here's one thread where people share their anecdotes

What does "exercise" even mean? Aerobics? Core strength? Higher-order activities like fighting or sports, where you exercise as part of training/performance? Could it be part of "meditation", like physical forms of yoga?

And where do you do it? With whom? Are you linking into a group mind? Or just your individual mind? Or some kinda combination of both?

 

[Draxolotl]

The gym is good for raising the cortisol levels in your body and causing you to feel a sense of relief after a work out. It helps with discipline, as well because it's not very fun at first.
I'm disabled and have difficulty doing intense workouts or anything hand related, but I do feel better after doing a lot of stretching and easy yoga.
It'll help cope with basic stressors and is a good escape, if only for a moment. If you have a dog, you two can get in the habit of taking walks around your area. it's nice to do it with another creature.