Start Moving – 5 reasons why you should move your body

New month, new post! Before I delve into this one, let me get one thing across – I am not by any means an athletic person. All my life I was terrible at sports, and even though I did get A’s in P.E., it was because I put in the effort, not necessarily because I excelled in sports. Anyways, with that being said, being physically active and moving my body a couple times a week has become a habit for me starting this year, and because of that, I’ve noticed a considerable change in my body and in my lifestyle. In this post, I want to share with you 5 reason why moving your body and leading a healthy, active lifestyle is important. And you don’t even have to be an athlete to make these changes for yourself.

１１月に突入し、すっかり秋めいてきましたね！この記事を始める前に、ひとつだけはっきりさせたいことがあります。私は決して運動神経が良いわけではないです。子供の頃からずっと運動神経ゼロで、体育の授業の成績は良かったものの、それは授業中努力したからもらえた成績。スポーツが上手だったからではありません。ですが、今年入ってから人生で今まで以上に身体を動かすようになり、身体にもライフスタイルにも大きな変化がありました。このポストでは、もっと健康的でアクティブなライフスタイルを築くために何故身体を動かした方が良いか、その理由を５つを紹介したいと思います。私みたいにアスリートじゃなくてもできることですよ！

To be quite honest with you, I used to be so lazy about getting my ass out of bed to go on a jog outside, or even sign up for a membership at the nearby gym. This all changed when I went through a devastating heartbreak at the beginning of the year, and I needed to find a healthy distraction to steer my focus away from negative thoughts. After one full day of moping and calling all my girlfriends, I signed up for a gym membership and it was the best thing I ever did for myself at the time. And I’m proud to say I haven’t stopped since.

正直に言うと、今までの私は結構怠け者で、近所でジョギングするにも、近くのジムに登録するにもやる気があまりなかったです。今年入ってすぐ失恋をしてしまい、ただただ落ち込むわけにもいかなかったので、ネガティブな気持ちを健康的に忘れる何かが必要でした。丸一日泣きまくって友達に電話しまくった次の日、近くのジムでメンバーシップ登録しました。その時から欠かさずジムに通い出して良かったと今本当に思います。

After being physically active for almost a whole year, below are 5 reasons why I believe moving your body is so important for physical and emotional health:

もうかれこれ一年ぐらいアクティブ生活を続けてきて、体力的な、そして感情的な健康のために身体を動かした方が良い理由５つを提案します：

1. You will be more alert and energetic throughout the day. 一日中エネルギッシュになります。According to this article, exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and helps your cardiovascular system work more efficiently, hence allowing you to do your daily chores with more energy. Doing a decent amount of cardio to work out a good sweat helps me maintain the energy I need, and if I happen to work out at night, it helps me sleep better, which leads me to my next point.
2. You will sleep better. もっとぐっすり眠れます。The same article states that regular exercise can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. I used to work out in the mornings, but because of my work schedule these days, I’ve been working out at night, and I definitely sleep so much better after I do. I wake up the next morning feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day.
3. You can achieve a toned body and control your weight. もっと引き締まった身体を作り、体重のコントロールもできます。I used to never have defined muscles until I started regular, continuous physical activity. But after working out using the machines at the gym, and then eventually switching to core workouts such as using the balance ball, I noticed my abs and biceps were becoming more toned, which is what I was aiming for. Also, regular exercise actually forced me to eat better, and I’m more selective of what I put in my body.
4. Increasing muscle mass leads to better metabolism. 筋肉量が増量し、新陳代謝もアップします。The less muscle mass you have, the slower your metabolism becomes. This is bound to happen as you get older, so it’s important to start exercising now. According to this article, muscle uses more calories than fat, so strengthening your muscles will make you into a more efficient calorie-burning machine, even when you’re at rest. During my 1~1 1/2 hour at the gym, I try to include different kinds of workouts to increase my muscle mass, hence improving my metabolism.
5. It puts you in a better mood. ポジティブな気分になれます！This is the best part, and this is why I started regularly working out in the first place. I want to feel good about myself and work towards a goal. And when I started achieving those goals small steps at a time, it felt good. I was proud of myself and I didn’t want to stop. I guarantee that you will be in a more positive mood once you begin a regular routine of exercise and start seeing improvement.

Top, sports bra, leggings and sneakers from Bershka.

All photos by Fu Sheng Wang.

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