As the mind benefits from stillness it’s quite the contrary for our bodies because it benefits from movement. Most people have no idea how good their body is designed to feel if only they included some form of physical activity in their daily routine. Numerous studies have shown that exercise is the number one healing remedy. According to Barbara Brennan, “The body is a self-healing organism: So it’s really about clearing things out of the way so the body can heal itself.” We can avoid metabolic illnesses such as heart disease, high blood pressure or type 2 diabetes if we engage in some form of movement/exercise. There is an adage that says, “if you do not find time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness” reinforces that our bodies are our most priceless possession and we owe it to ourselves to take care of it.

Benefits of movement

When we exercise, we strengthen our muscles, improve our circulation and maintain our balance. Another important factor of exercise is to remove toxins from our bodies.

According to Dr L Danovan Whyte, “toxins are impurities which are potentially injurious to the body. They are usually of an acidic nature and often result in cell damage, death and decay.” In the body toxin includes pollutants, synthetic chemicals, heavy metals and processed food which all negatively affect our health.

How do we remove toxins?

There are several ways to remove toxins from our bodies namely; through our organs, stretching, lymph massage, diet and, of course, doing some form of activity. If our organs – kidneys, liver, digestive system, skin and lungs – are not healthy, they will not be able to eliminate toxins. It is, therefore, imperative to include other ways of removing toxins because some of us may not find out that we have a dysfunctional organ until it is too late. Let’s explore a few of the methods below that we can employ during the Christmas season:

Stretching

Miranda Esmode-White reminds us that, “We have 650 muscles in our body and we need to rebalance them all.’ Stretching allows us to move in rotations with a goal of strengthening and aligning our stabiliser muscles which are responsible for holding up our bodies upright and keeping it in control.

Stretching also helps our fascia. They are spider-web like connective tissues that surrounds and hold every organ, blood vessel, bone, nerve fibre and muscle in place. When we stretch our fascia daily it allows more blood flow, more circulation and more lymphatic flow through our tissues. Fascia restriction can cause pain or tightness. Stretching keeps our muscle flexible, healthy and strong and allows the lymph to do its job resulting in the removal of waste.

Lymph massage

The lymphatic system is the largest circulatory system in our bodies. We have over 500 lymph nodes spread throughout the body which are responsible for collecting the waste products from our cells. So when we do some form of activity we are helping our bodies to prevent our lymph from being backed up. When our lymph nodes are clogged it is an indicator that toxins can’t be eliminated from the body and cells can’t function properly resulting in dysfunction or disease. A lymph massage helps the body maintain proper blood circulation, body fluid balance and immune functions.

Exercise

When we exercise it quickens our breathing, promotes blood circulation and increase sweat production. These are all factors that promotes the release of toxins. Therefore, the more blood circulated through the body, it allows the liver and the lymph nodes to do their jobs.

Sedentary lifestyle

Being inactive all day can allow your abdomen to compress which slows down digestion. A sedentary lifestyle can lead to issues such as bloating, heartburn and constipation. This cause our bowels to function less efficiently than when we are in motion. You also lose muscle strength and endurance. Your bones also suffer from lack of activity.

We have to be willing to pay the price for being physically fit and having a healthy body. In a fast-paced world, as humans we crave convenience and we expect things should come to us as fast and easy as possible. However, building good health is not as fast or easy and there are no shortcuts. The question is, “are you willing to pay the price?”. As Trinidadian songwriter Teddyson John urges his listeners in his popular song Allez, “It’s time to get up and start moving.” These are simple words but they convey a strong message especially in this strange new norm we are now living in where we are forced to deal with a lot of unwanted issues and the remedy is all tied up in one word – exercise. Exercise should be the one non-negotiable thing to do on our daily duties list. after all, motion is lotion, so let’s get up and move forward.