Exercise and Wellness

What is wellness mean to you?

Wellness is when a healthy body and brain (mind) are in sync.

Many people think stress is just something external, the result of the trials and tribulations of life.

But whether a stressor is a minor change in your daily schedule or a life threatening event, it is actually the brain that determines when the body's internal equilibrium is disturbed. The external stressors in life, combined with disturbance in the brain's delicate biochemical balance, can actually make any internal pain we feel seem even worse, which has a significant impact on how we deal with external stressors.

And while aging and genetics cannot be altered, being weak and sick in your old age can be prevented. A lack of exercise, too much alcohol and a bad diet, together with stress, multiplies the damage on the body and brain.

Simply put, exercise is the number one antidote to fight stress, anxiety and depression.

First, exercise has a positive ripple effect on the body, brain and mind. Exercise improves the functions of everything, from your cardiovascular system, to your immune system, circular system, digestive system, muscular system, and skeletal system. Exercise does this, in part, by alleviating the physical and emotional feelings of stress. But it also works at a cellular level. When you exercise, your brain and body make molecular by-products that can end up damaging your cells. That is actually a good thing, because the repair mechanisms needed to fix those cells leave them hardier and in better shape for the future.

Think of it this way: Just like muscle cells, as brain cells get broken down and built up, they become more resilient. Exercise not only makes you feel great physically, it also helps your brain and mind deal better with stress, sparking brain growth and strengthening the connections between existing neurons.

Exercise not only makes you look and think better, it also gives you stronger bones and muscle. Exercise creates stronger connection between your brain cells and countless studies have shown that exercise helps grow additional brain cells in the hippocampus. That is an important area of the brain; it is where memory is stored and teaches you how to learn.

Now compare all of these positive impacts to the negative effects that stress has, particularly on your brain. Chronic stress deactivates the temporoparietal junction (TMJ) area of your brain, which is responsible for allowing us to communicate with others and awareness of their feelings and ideas.

Testimonial

I began training with Mustafa about 3 months ago. About 6 weeks before that, I lost my 28 year old brother very tragically. Following his death, I began taking anxiety medication daily (in additional to anti-depressants that I've taken for about 3 years). I was completely exhausted, physically and emotionally. My first session with Mustafa was on Monday, and by the end of that week I realized I had gone 48 hours without taking any anxiety medication, which was a first since my brother's death. While the physical benefits of training with Mustafa have been fantastic, the mental aspect is what has really blown me away. My 55 minute sessions three times a week are like therapy sessions. Mustafa has helped me to become much more aware of my emotions. I tend to be very emotional and reactionary, but over the past 3 months I have become much calmer and in control of my feelings. When I find myself in frustrating situations now - anything from traffic to work stress- I instinctively reframe my thoughts and am better able to just "let go" of the emotions and stress that I am feeling. Training with Mustafa has been the best thing I could have done for both my physical and mental health. I have not taken anxiety medication since that first week with Mustafa and am hopeful that I can discontinue the antidepressants in the near future. I feel like I am a better mom to my 3 year old and happier wife to my husband.

Meredith,

Alexandria Virginia

 1 on1 PT, Weight Loss and Wellness Session $59! $190 value!