Why You Should Never Skip Your Workout: A Personal Recovery Story
Getting back to exercise after being sick can be challenging, but as one fitness enthusiast recently discovered, avoiding exercise altogether can make recovery even more difficult. After feeling sick for several days and skipping workouts, they experienced increased stiffness, pain, and discomfort throughout their body.
“I have been feeling sick for some days, I have not really exercised and I did not do any good for my system,” they shared during a recent workout session. “Not exercising did not help me, but made my body to be stiff. I tried to stretch, even the back of my legs, my knees, my toes, everything pained me. Because of lack of exercise.”
The Importance of Maintaining Momentum
Despite still experiencing some symptoms including headache and nasal congestion, returning to exercise proved beneficial for overall recovery. “The energy is coming back,” they noted, comparing their improvement to the previous day when they couldn't sustain even five minutes of jogging without stopping.
This experience highlights an important principle in fitness: consistency matters. Even when we don't feel our best, gentle movement can help maintain mobility and prevent the stiffness that comes from extended periods of inactivity.
Mind Over Matter: Controlling Your Body
One of the most powerful insights shared during this workout session was about the mental aspect of fitness: “It is very hard to lose weight, but very easy to gain weight. All you need to do is to push your body. You force it. Not letting your body control you—you control your body.”
This mindset extends beyond exercise to nutrition as well: “Control your mouth. Control your belly. Control your cravings. Control everything. And then force your body to move. Force it. It's not easy. But you're gonna force it.”
Starting Small: The Path to Fitness
For those intimidated by fitness, the message was clear—you don't need to start with extreme workouts:
“We need to exercise anyhow we can. We must not be professional as well. We must not lift 100 pounds. Just start by lifting 10 pounds. Five pounds. I cannot lift 10 pounds? Just little by little, we are going to be fine.”
This gradual approach applies to cardio exercise as well. Using a treadmill with various settings for incline, speed, and intensity allows for workouts to be tailored to current fitness levels, with room to increase difficulty as strength and endurance improve.
The Connection Between Health and Achievement
Perhaps the most profound observation was about the relationship between physical health and our ability to achieve our goals: “Your health is what? When you are in good health, you can achieve. It's only when you cannot do certain things that you cannot achieve your goals.”
This reminder serves as powerful motivation to prioritize fitness and health—not as ends in themselves, but as enablers of everything else we want to accomplish in life.
Getting Back on Track
If you've been sidelined by illness or have fallen out of your exercise routine, remember these key takeaways:
- Start slowly but consistently
- Listen to your body while still challenging it
- Control your cravings and food choices
- Recognize that small steps lead to significant progress
- View health as a foundation for all other achievements
As our fitness enthusiast demonstrated, even when recovering from illness, getting your body moving again can be the catalyst that brings back your energy and puts you on the path to feeling better again.
