28.2 Pacify stress, burn of adrenaline

2. Strategy: Strenuous training

If you are acutely stressed, that is to say, you are on sick leave or work on a reduced schedule or are otherwise “put out of the game” then I would like to hear from you. Mail me so I can give you a discount code for a session with me. You have to get it right if you choose training as one of your ways. There are many ways to do it wrong if you have a lot of adrenaline in your body. See especially the sections marked in red.

Introduction to strenuous training (11 minutes)

This method is for you who are busy in your everyday life and therefore have only a few hours per week to get out of stress.

You must imagine that by exercising hard, your body uses the accumulated stress hormones. So it’s like taking a pill if you have a headache. You can make the symptoms go away for a while. If you then continue to stress yourself, you will get your stress symptoms again. The stress will start up slowly, and you will get more and more influenced by stress in your body.

You have to imagine that the intense workout is like taking a stress relief pill. After one full hour of strenuous training, you have consumed the body’s adrenaline. You have “run from the saber tooth tiger” or have “fought the neighboring tribe” and come back home to a safe harbor. The stress is out of your body.

How often do you need to exercise? It depends on how stressed your everyday life is and how much stress you drag with you from the past.

Once a week is probably the very least, and if you have (long-term) illness, 1 hour a day is the least. I go to training with a lady who has opted out of getting blood pressure-lowering medication and instead works out an hour a day. It is becoming more and more common to do strenuous exercise to reduce symptoms and pill consumption. But in short, it is the adrenaline and stress in the body that you reduce.

Stress Pill

You can also “take an exercise pill” as needed. So work out when you can feel the stress. It requires you to be pretty good at feeling when you are stressed. If you can’t feel it, exercise regularly 2-3 hours a week.

You aren’t used to training? What to watch out for!

If you are not used to exercising, then you should start very very slowly.

The body must learn that it is not dangerous to exercise, and you must therefore train much less intensely the first time. If you start too quickly, the body refuses to carry you there 2 or 3 times. I’ve seen it 100 times. All of those with New Year’s wishes come in January and push far too hard, so I’ve been envious. But after a couple of times, I did not see them again, and there was plenty of room. Don’t make this classic mistake.

You need to get in shape. It may take three months if you are under 50 and maybe 6 months if you are over 50. Be patient. The slower the better.

When you have found a good rhythm and have no trouble maintaining it, only then are you able to intensify the training

You must have the right mindset:

You don’t have to be perfect.
Don’t be the best.
Don’t compete with anyone.
Don’t feel bad about being the worst
Don’t be the fastest
Don’t push yourself

Some warn against exercising when you are acutely stressed: and this is because you can quickly push yourself to be even more stressed:

Here’s how to avoid pressing yourself:

It’s fine to tell the teacher that you need to start up slowly (You must tell the teacher!)
It’s fine to skip exercises. (You need to skip exercises at the start.)
It’s not good to do as many exercises as the others (You MUST NOT do as many exercises as the others)
After vacations or breaks, you have to accept that it’s almost like starting all over
If you get injured, the training should be reduced, and if necessary, consult a specialist (training hard
should be stopped)

Spinning/bike

I recommend SPINNING to everyone … indoor cycling, but preferably in a center where an instructor challenges you.

It is foot and knee-friendly, so you don’t get injured easily
You can probably cycle already
No one comes first or last, so you don’t push yourself so much

If the center uses FTP/watts, you can easily follow your progress and will not overwork. You simply start with a much smaller FTP. You therefore have a super easy hour and want to come again. You add 5-10 to your FTP per visit until you are slightly challenged and then stay there for a few weeks until it is easy again.

Cons:… in some fitness centers/gyms, they play loud music that is not your style, so remember earbuds.

You need to get rid of your adrenaline, and it’s easiest on teams where a good trainer makes you perform a bit more and for a more extended period. And maybe teaches some good exercises.

You can of course cycle indoors in your own home or in nature. But it feels different than having a professional instructor with a well-planned program.

Note: There are also bicycles for chairs and wheelchairs if you cannot use a regular bicycle. Search for a sofa bike, and they will show up. Make sure you buy one that is so heavy that it does not tip over. (gyms, might play loud music that is not your style, so remember earbuds).