The Healing Benefits of Exercise

The importance of exercise cannot be overstated. So many people in this world are suffering from illness and disease that can be reversed through proper exercise. There are too many individuals in North America who are living under a mountain of stress that can be lightened by just moving their bodies around a few minutes a day.

A fundamental rule of life is that for every cause there is an effect. It’s basic logic. Yet for some reason in our society we have thrown this logic out the window. Physicians prescribe pharmaceutical drug after pharmaceutical drug that deal with the symptoms of disease but never cure the underlying cause of disease. As a society we have failed to ask the right questions. We have failed our loved ones. I can speak from personal experience on this matter. But let's see what Dr. T. Colin Campbell has to say concerning the rising rates of cancer,

"If you are male in this country, the American Cancer Society says that you have a 47% chance of getting cancer. If you are female, you fare a little better, but you still have a whopping 38% lifetime chance of getting cancer. 1 The rates at which we die from cancer are among the highest in the world, and it has been getting worse (Chart 1.1). Despite thirty years of the massively funded War on Cancer, we have made little progress." - The China Study p.12

These are the charts:

How is this possible?

Why are so many precious souls being lost despite the amazing advancements of technology, science, and medicine?

I personally have been affected by cancer. I saw first hand a good friend of mine bury his 15 year old daughter after years and years of fighting cancer at one of the most prestigious hospitals in the world!

Why did this happen? Why?

That is the question that the medical profession is failing to answer and take on.

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Fortunately there are doctors and scientists that have made the effort find the answers. Many studies are now confirming that our lifestyle, environment, and diet have more to do with rising health epidemics than anything else. The true cure for cancer is not finding some drug that can destroy tumours, but in preventative care through lifestyle modifications and nutrition. And increasing science is showing the power of natural medicine to even reverse disease already in the body.

That being said I want to focus on the healing benefits and attributes of one of these lifesaving lifestyle modifications: exercise!

This quote from one of the most insightful authors about health I’ve ever read says this,

“Inactivity is a fruitful cause of disease. Exercise quickens and equalizes the circulation of the blood, but in idleness the blood does not circulate freely, and the changes in it, so necessary to life and health, do not take place. The skin, too, becomes inactive. Impurities are not expelled as they would be if the circulation had been quickened by vigorous exercise, the skin kept in a healthy condition, and the lungs fed with plenty of pure, fresh air. This state of the system throws a double burden on the excretory organs, and disease is the result.” - Ellen G. White

An increase in blood circulation alone has enormous benefits on the human body. Lowering the resting heart rate, strengthening heart function, lowering blood pressure, improving oxygen delivery throughout the body, increasing blood supply to muscles, and so much more.

Exercise not only purifies the blood but has powerful healing effects on the mind and can be especially beneficial for those suffering from depression, dementia, anxiety, stress, and feelings of inadequacy. All these are greatly diminished with regular exercise.

Exercise has been shown to increase powerful mood-elevating substances in the brain known as endorphins.

I absolutely love this quote from “The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine”, by Michael T. Murray,

“If the benefits of exercise could be put in a pill, you would have the most powerful health-promoting medication available.”

In layman's terms what does this all mean? You will no longer be dependent on coffee to get you through the day. You will no longer be completely exhausted after a full day of work but will have the energy to play with your children. You will have the energy to spend time with your husband or wife. Increased circulation will help those men suffering from erectile dysfunction. You will feel stronger and more confident. Exercise will dramatically improve your quality of sleep, which will give you even more energy and added health benefits! You will have better focus at work. You will feel better throughout the day just because. And at the same time you are dramatically reducing your susceptibility of getting cancer, or cardiovascular disease, and many other chronic illnesses and diseases.

If you love yourself, if you love your family, if you love you children, get up and get moving. Your life and the life of those whom you love depend on it. But in all honesty, its the most fun form of healing out there. I’m honestly getting pumped myself while writing this to go workout lol!

My only question to you is: why? Why would you not use one of the most powerful forms of healing known to man to change your life?

Barnavy Gonzalez, Nutritional Advisor