5 Reasons Every Grieving Person Should Lift Weights

Lifting weights is about more than reaching a desired aesthetic with your body. 

Strength training will improve your chances of longevity and change the absolute quality of how you move through this world, but it will also be essential for your life after loss.

Think of your time training as a chance to improve several aspects of your life, including, but not limited to, concentration, improved sleep, improved mood, your inner strength, and more!

Inner Strength– Getting strong physically changes how you move through the world, emotionally and spiritually, by default. You can’t help but face your troubles with better energy and a more resilient spirit. You rower on your exterior can not help but impact how you feel on your interior. This shift alone can dramatically change your life after loss. It reminds you to keep moving forward.

Hope Molecules – One of the most significant discoveries in the past decade is what training does for your entire being. Did you know your body produces myokines, or “Hope Molecules”, when muscles contract? When these tiny proteins reach your brain and across the blood-brain barrier, they act as powerful antidepressant. They improve your mood, help you learn, and are even anti-inflammatory.

Concentration – I had difficulty processing data for my VP job when I became a widow. I quickly learned that just a little exercise went a long way towards helping me think, process information and deal with the constant overwhelm of grief. The improved concentration is probably due to the mathematical and repetitive nature of training with weights, which stimulates the neurochemistry of the Brin’s attentional system. Potentially resulting in improved memory, more creativity, better productivity, sharper focus, or more clarity of thought.

Better Sleep – Quality sleep is critical for your mental, physical, and emotional health. When you are grieving, it becomes almost impossible to sleep. Resistance training, such as free weights and stretching cables, may be better for getting quality sleep than aerobic exercise.

Emotional Regulation – The #1 reason I weigh lift is how it makes me feel. I always walk away feeling a little stronger in all areas of my life. Among the many positive effects, studies have proven that lifting exercises for mental health lowers depression, especially in non-serve cases. In addition, weightlifting has been proven to regulate essential hormones such as Dopamine, Noradrenaline, and Serotonin.

I hope this information was helpful for you.

Love,

Michelle