Time to Get Unbrainwashed

Someone very close to me is struggling with sleeplessness and has been prescribed sleep meds. Ever since turning 50, she has had a hard time getting to sleep and she has had a hard to staying asleep. I asked her if she’s exercising and she said, “Not really.” I then asked her if her doctor recommended – or even asked about her exercise routine – and she said, “Definitely not.” This stunned me. 

I’m not a doctor, but If I was her doctor, I would have prescribed movement first. In fact, I’d tell her to “go big with exercise.” 

Work up a sweat every single day.
Go for an hours-long walk, not 15minutes
Do a morning workout and an evening one. 
Think exertion, physically, with brawny challenges
Think  exertion, mentally, with choreography/variety like in a dance class

There is an exercise-sleep connection that should be common knowledge. I mean, every mother knows that when their toddler didn’t go to the playground and “run around,” bedtime would become a nightmare.

I’m aware that many medical situations are complex – my friend’s sleeping issues are complex as she’s dealing with PTSD too – but I’m here to remind you to overlook exercise at your own peril.  The (basic) habit of regular exercise is real medicine. It might be cheap and easy, and you don’t need an appointment with a guy in a lab coat to do it, but it’s top tier, none-the-less.

And by the way, there is a copious amount of research proving that exercise helps improve sleep, mitigate anxiety, relieve constipation, and clear up skin conditions, like acne.  Pilates? Barre? Fusion? Yoga? These are not “nice little hobbies” – they are self-administered medicines, helping you live your best life. 

I think we’ve been brainwashed to think something so accessible, so free, and so self-sufficient, like taking a walk, can’t possibly be a remedy.

Time to get unbrainwashed. 
 Let’s Move!