Known as the multitasking, yet mindful generation, Millennials constantly struggle to maintain their work-life balance, build meaningful bonds with friends and their family, and at the same time achieve their professional goals. The pressures of the modern world often play havoc on their overall health, which in turn has an avalanche of negative effects on their professional and personal lives, and so the vicious cycle tends to continue. However, this generation, in love with nature, health, and fitness, has discovered the many ways in which physical activity can be used to better their lives.
While exercise is certainly not the only factor at play, it contributes to many other elements that help complete this healthful puzzle and lead to a more balanced life. Let’s take a closer look at how Millennials benefit from exercise and how it triggers a multitude of other positive habit changes that contribute further to that much-needed balance in life.
A stronger immune system
Research has shown that even milder forms of exercise than the popular HIIT programs can have a wonderful effect on reducing body-wide inflammation that tends to induce immune reactions. Simply put, with less inflammation comes less harm for your immune system, and even a faster way of walking or light treadmill runs as short as 20 minutes can achieve this effect. As a result, Millennials who invest in workouts tend to lead healthier lives, which in turn means fewer sick days, better productivity, and more socialization.
This is one of the main reasons so many Millennials turn to workouts even when most people would gladly stay indoors, stuck to a TV and drinking cocoa – they’ll gladly do that after they wrap up their workout session. Over the long term, exercise becomes one of the main ways to protect your body from external as well as internal factors that can compromise your health.
Building healthy habits
Perhaps the most notable way in which Millennials are using exercise as a systematic way to change their lives for the better is by using it to fuel the rest of their decisions. How? By letting exercise impact their eating decisions, as one healthy habit has a tendency to push you in the right direction. No Millennial wants to invest hours every week only to stifle their results with poor dietary choices.
So, they create positive rituals instead. They invest in high-quality gear, such as a compression shirt for men that helps improve recovery and puts you in that “athlete” mindset when you’re tempted to stay in. Ladies gladly invest in durable leggings, on the other hand, while you’ll also see almost every gym goer boast a shaker bottle for their protein smoothies. These little, supportive choices have a long-term impact on how Millennials treat their health – as a priority.
Nutrition that truly nurtures
As we’ve already mentioned, one of those beautiful consequences of regular workouts includes better eating habits, as well. In addition to being aware of the importance of macronutrient intake, Millennials also understand the relevance of including powerful brain foods into their menus to fuel their cognitive capacity and keep their brand healthy throughout years. From antioxidant-packed berries, to monitoring their water intake, Millennials are no strangers to tweaking their diets on a regular basis.
They master the art of meal-prepping, learn time-saving techniques to help leave more time for other activities, and they do their best to turn their menu into a diverse source of nutrients, including vitamins and minerals. It may start as a way to make your workouts more effective, but it ends up turning into an all-encompassing lifestyle based on healthy choices. Plus, it’s much easier to inspire yourself to opt for a healthy meal instead of junk food when you know you’re working hard at the gym!
Exercise as stress detox
It’s not just yoga or tai-chi, although the two are becoming increasingly popular among Millennials as a way to reduce anxiety and stress in the long-run. Today, going to the gym or any other physical activity has become a stress relief for many a busy Millennial, and for a number of excellent reasons. For one, exercise can reduce your cortisol levels, and help your body produce more “happy” chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine, which improve your mood in a heartbeat.
These temporary perks are trumped by the long-lasting effects of people who choose to stay active – they grow their confidence, their belief in their own abilities and skills, they balance their sleeping patterns, and they boost their resilience, both physical and mental. It turns out, Millennials have found a perfect “vent” in exercising, as a way to stay healthy, emotionally, mentally, and physically.
Greater energy levels
Better sleep and better, more nutritious meals that are inspired by a consistent exercise plan also lead to an increase in energy every day. This becomes a lovely cycle to replace the vicious one, and provide your body and your mind with ample energy to tackle not just the workout, but the challenges that lie ahead.
It may seem counterintuitive to some, as exercise indeed does require plenty of energy, but it also helps you become more alert, improve your endurance, and helps you become more resilient to sources of strain you encounter every day. So, it’s no wonder Millennials who work out on a regular basis actually feel more energized than those who don’t.
While working out remains only one of many healthy habits a modern human requires to achieve a balanced life, it is still a vital factor too many people neglect. Every Millennial needs their own trusty routine, and exercise has certainly become one of the most promising methods to strike that fine, elusive balance in life – and you can surely do the same.
