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Advice for an active lifestyle

by Kristoffer Kjaer on May 30, 2022

Gode råd til en aktiv livsstil

Few would argue against activity and movement as a source of living longer and feeling better both physically and mentally, but it can sometimes be hard to get started. For example, because you've sunk so far into the sofa that it's impossible to get up again, or because over the past few years it's been impossible to do anything other than home exercise or go for the same walk again and again, as a result of COVID-19.

In this post, we try to provide some inspiration on how you can increase your activity on a daily basis, as well as highlight the benefits of maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle. There is a lot to gain, but it sometimes takes a bit of hard work - but as they say; if it was easy, everyone would do it!

Why is activity and movement important?

There may be different reasons why you would like to benefit from increased activity - but fundamentally, we know that activity and movement is an essential part of good health - whether mental or physical.

Physical activity actively prevents lifestyle diseases. That's why it's so important to spend at least 30 minutes a day moving. In fact, there is nothing that exercise and movement cannot prevent, treat or improve. Physical activity improves quality of life, which is why we set out to make being healthy fun.

Mental health is essential for a healthy lifestyle

When you get your heart rate up and move your body, the brain secretes several different chemicals that contribute to better mental health. Dopamine, serotonin, adrenaline and endorphins are some of the substances and hormones secreted when your body is moving and your heart rate increases slightly.

The brain reacts in the same way, whether to illegal substances or to these chemical substances that the brain secretes itself, and this means that you can become completely dependent on dopamine, for example. Dopamine tells the brain that you're doing something good and it actually acts as a reward chemically - and you get addicted to that reward, so you can also get addicted to doing things that give your body that reward.

However, you don't need to reach your maximum heart rate to benefit from the release of these substances - on the contrary, going for a walk, dancing to your favourite song or even swinging the vacuum cleaner can be enough. Especially if your starting point is little to no movement daily, your body will respond to the change and it may be enough to get out and get some fresh air.

Movement also affects physical well-being and appearance

Better fitness is essential when we're talking physical well-being. There are very few things worse than being the only one out of breath after a short flight of stairs. At the start of your lifestyle change, you'll probably find it hard to breathe sometimes. It's your fitness that's poor because you haven't been active for a while - but it can quickly improve and you can quickly avoid being out of breath on the stairs. All it takes is hard work and a plan!

In the beginning, the activity doesn't have to be too physically challenging - on the contrary, you can start out very slowly. Even the smallest activity can be challenging - remember, we all start somewhere and one place is no better than another. As long as you have the desire to get started and you are actually active. That's a victory in itself.

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