Chapter Four: Exercise and Physiology – The Healing Power of Stress, Endorphins, and Exercise
If you follow the rules above when exercising, you won't have any problems, because it will make your body healthier, and by definition, you're already doing aerobic exercise. A common mistake many jogging beginners make is to run hard for a minute or two, then stop to catch their breath, and then do a short sprint. These are the people most likely to end up in the cardiology department. For beginners, a safer approach is to maintain a slow and steady pace, that is, to be able to exercise comfortably for 15-30 minutes.
Next, we'll introduce a "simple health test method." Spend a few days doing walking and jogging to find your fastest, most comfortable pace and the corresponding heart rate. After walking or jogging for 15 minutes, stop and measure your pulse for about 6 seconds, then multiply by 10 to get your heart rate. Don't worry that the measured value will be much higher or lower than you expect. As long as you use your "fastest, most comfortable pace," your heart rate reading will be more accurate than what you get in a laboratory setting.
In my testing center, there was once a woman who had some doubts about this concept. She had just turned 40, and according to the reference standard, her appropriate aerobic heart rate was 144. However, when she exercised as described above, her heart rate was 165. The instructor suggested she slow down, but then she didn't feel like she was exercising. In fact, because her heart is relatively small, her heart rate is faster for someone her age, but even with the faster heart rate, she didn't feel uncomfortable. Everyone's heart size is different, so you must find the aerobic heart rate that suits you.
I expect everyone to know their own aerobic heart rate and check it every 3 to 4 days, and then measure how many minutes it would take to run 1.6 kilometers at that heart rate.
This is the simplest, cheapest, most accurate, and most practical health test method. At our fitness center, the average person takes this test once a month, and naturally, they all run a little faster than the previous month. For example, a slightly overweight person might improve their time running 1.6 kilometers from 15 minutes to 14 minutes at the same aerobic heart rate, while a jogger might improve their time from 10 minutes to 9.5 minutes at the same aerobic heart rate.
There's a subtle, complex, yet profoundly significant difference between the testing method I use and others. Most health books contain enticing charts categorized by gender and age, offering "standard values" for each individual. These charts might state things like, "A healthy person can run 1.6 kilometers in 6 minutes; a person of average health needs 9 minutes; a person of poor health needs 15 minutes," and so on. Misled by this, you'll naturally run as fast as possible, rather than at your most comfortable pace to barely meet the so-called "standard value." Such tests don't assess your true physical condition; in fact, they're quite dangerous. Remember, you must maintain your most comfortable pace during the test; otherwise, accurate results are impossible. In this book, I won't provide any such numbers or charts for reference because I don't want you to compare yourself to others; I only want you to compare yourself to yourself. If you run faster this year than last year, then your health has improved; or if you are 40 years old and can still maintain the stamina you had when you were 35 to run 1.6 kilometers in 10 minutes, then your health has indeed improved.
Women visiting a gym for the first time are usually only focused on losing weight, paying no attention to their overall health or their heart rate during exercise. We try to convince them-or perhaps brainwash them-through our planned health testing method. I want them to understand their metabolic function, optimal levels, and internal biochemistry, because once these factors improve, weight gain will naturally stop. Finally, remember to regularly test your health to ensure your aerobic exercise rate is consistently improving; then you'll no longer have to fear fat.
Original blank pages
Stress, Endorphins, and Exercise
There are many so-called "life stress event" reference charts on the market. Generally, the higher the event is listed on these charts, the greater the stress it causes. If you are facing two or three annoying events at the same time, the cumulative value of all the events indicates the amount of stress you are experiencing.
People often feel like they're on the verge of collapse, but they don't know why they're anxious, tense, irritable, and tired. It's not necessarily "big things" that are bothersome; even the mundane things in daily life can cause stress. When we're facing real troubles or unhappy times, friends and family usually offer support. However, the stress of everyday琐事 (trivial matters) is often more vexing, even if it doesn't seem like a big deal at first glance.
The most difficult stress to assess is actually the "small stress" that accumulates over a long period. If a physiologist only focuses on a reference table of major life stressors, he will easily overlook the real causes of psychological stress.
Personally, one of the most unpleasant pressures for me is that no one understands the pressure I'm under. In fact, what your friends find enjoyable might be stressful for you. For example, your husband is a very friendly person, always kind and gentle. He expects you to be as kind as him, and as his wife, you try your best to be enthusiastic at all times to please him. However, often at parties, while he's energetically greeting guests, you're practically exhausted. Although your friends might say it's your good fortune to have married such a wonderful person, and you smile and agree, deep down you're very sad and don't understand why you feel this way.
What you find stressful might be enjoyable for others. Take me, for example; I always feel stressed when using public transportation. I hate flying, taking public transport, or taxis because accommodating other people's schedules is incredibly frustrating. Driving myself immediately calms me down. Conversely, another author in this book, Leah, is the complete opposite. She doesn't like driving; she enjoys what I call "long waits" on public transport, using the time to read. If I had to do the same, I think I'd go crazy.
Identifying the source of your stress is crucial. While you may not be able to change it, you can adjust your mindset to cope with it. I have a dentist friend who, if a patient's gums are still bleeding during a follow-up appointment, feels it's her fault; if she's told a patient how to prevent bleeding, but six months later the patient still can't follow the doctor's instructions, she feels like a failure. She should understand that many people are unwilling to change their lifestyle habits, even if those changes are beneficial. She needs to learn to focus on her successes instead of dwelling on her failures. Later, I suggested she keep a record of how many patients' conditions improved over six months. She was surprised to find that 80% of her patients' oral health improved. Previously, she had been too fixated on the imperfections in her work, completely unaware that she had actually been doing a very good job.
---
Chapter 18