Does exercise help us heal or push us too much?

[[Au...]]

At 13 months off I am noticing improvements but am by no means fully healed. I recently began an exercise routine for the first time in quite a while, consisting of daily 30 minute bike rides at a moderate pace fast enough to break a sweat but not fast enough to make me feel like I am pushing myself. While I have no problem with the exercise, and I can feel the endorphins that are released, I have noticed that I am not sleeping as well at night since starting.

My question is: does mild exercise induce healing, or is it bad for us? I feel like I need to do things other than just sit on my phone all day in order to heal, but I don't want to lengthen my healing journey. Any advice or insight is greatly appreciated.

[[Kh...]]

I have no proof and am a newbie...but I have been getting out for long walks and i am certain a good sweat helps get this toxic stuff out of our bodies faster!

[[An...]]

I am doing 3 (20 min) sessions daily on a stationary bike. I personally feel that it is helping me heal as I slowly detox from valium. I also ride at a mild to moderate pace. Intensity is the key. Too intense is counterproductive. My normal RHR = approx. 55 BPM. When I ride my bike, I get it up to 105-110 BPM. I have been doing this for over a decade now. I went from two to three daily sessions and I am definitely feeling and sleeping better IMO. When you break it up into 20-minute segments, it is very easy to do instead of one long session. I really look forward to it daily. Some days, I just don't feel like doing anything, so I don't but I do ride on most days. I also lift weights in a gym 3-4 days per week.💪

[[pi...]]

Hello @[Au...],

I started cycling when I was about 4 months off benzos. I worked up very slowly in terms of how long and far I cycled. It really helped me to be outside, back to a sport I loved. I will admit that a few times I did push it and suffered a wave afterwards. 

Exercising late in the day can make it difficult to sleep. I remember playing tennis late, from 9:00-10:30 and finding it really hard to get to sleep. This was long before I was on benzos. 

Perhaps if you do some gentle stretching and deep belly breathing at night this might help your body relax for sleep.

[Guest [...]]

I personally find exercise routines are too intense and so I favour gently dancing around the room in an "interpretative" style, the sort that is embarrassing if anyone saw you doing it, to be the best way of moving the body around.  I can't get outside to walk at the moment as it is all too bright and stimulating but walking would be my preferred option, but until then I'll carry on dancing like a 5 year old child.

[[Ji...]]

 after reading the kind and thoughtful words from A37 and the replies from KK, AB7, and PG, a warm chuckle came over me when I read Gabba gabba do's reply. It just felt so warm and reminded me "I ought not take myself so seriously" . I do hope you get outside soon GGD. 

Personally, today has only been 7 weeks since my last 10mg of Valium. Its mostly been absolute hell. However, I'm not sure if I would have 7 weeks (today at 2pm) if it weren't for walking 7-11,000 steps per day, stretching along with free weights and 20 slow to intense mins daily on my stationary bike. And for me there were days when I overdid it, I quess thats all part of relearning and rewiring the brain, for me. 

[Guest [...]]

@[Ji...] that level of exercise is very impressive after such a short time, well done if it makes you feel better. As for me getting outside soon, I have a garden so I do stuff in that when it isn't torrential rain in the UK

[[me...]]

Hi Jimmy that's impressive I can only manage 4.oo steps every two weeks 🥴 and I love walking but in too much head and facial pain 

🚶‍♂️

[[Br...]]

Hello @[Au...]- I found I had to adjust my sense of what was 'pushing too hard' when I was in withdrawal.  This meant pulling back to more moderate intensity exercise. - eg. walking briskly rather than jogging. As @[pi...] mentions, the time of day is important - it can rev up your system too much if you exercise closer to bedtime.  As with many aspects of withdrawal exercise tolerance varies from one individual to another so it makes sense to start at a modest level and gradually build up to where you feel you're benefitting and comfortable.

[[mi...]]

 

In fact, sports and various physical activities play a big role in my life. I can often feel stressed or anxious about different things, so the best solution for me is to spend some time doing physical activity to clear my mind. And recently, I've discovered a great way to combine both exercising to keep my body in shape and calm my thoughts and stress https://betterme.world/articles/somatic-exercises/. And thanks to this, I feel much more relaxed about my mental and physical health now. 

 

Edited yesterday at 16:25 by [mi...]

[[PE...]]

A heavy workout puts me in a very nice place mentally. All those feel good hormones doing there job. 

 

[[No...]]

Quote

"If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving." - Martin Luther King Jr.

I do believe moving is crucial about surviving and recovery. In most cases after surgery doctors want one to be on his legs in the same day! In our hell we need to move because the other path leads only to the bed and when one is in the bed for a long time it's worst scenario. When one is in bad condition but moving, the brain is going stronger like after any other finished challenge. I write about this for people who read here and think "Wtf? I can't stand up from the bed and you guys talk about exercising..". I was on the bed few times due to depression from benzo tolerance and withdrawals, moving out was and still is the only thing that make me go through this. 

[[mr...]]

From others i talked to on reddit benzo withdrawals people that thought they were never healed said exercise was the only thing that helped them and that they do it daily

 

some guy pm'ed me said he thought he would never heal until he started working out everyday and taking care of hisself and semen retention

 

I havnt tried this method yet but im going to sign up to the gym next week after i get back from vacation

my symptoms arent as bad as most people here because i was on for a short time but i still have sharp head pains daily and back of my head feels like its burning or on fire /squeezing pressure in forehead. If this final symptom goes away i would be 100% healed i feel or at least 90% 

[[PE...]]

2 minutes ago, [[m...] said:

From others i talked to on reddit benzo withdrawals people that thought they were never healed said exercise was the only thing that helped them and that they do it daily

some guy pm'ed me said he thought he would never heal until he started working out everyday and taking care of hisself and semen retention

I havnt tried this method yet but im going to sign up to the gym next week after i get back from vacation

my symptoms arent as bad as most people here because i was on for a short time but i still have sharp head pains daily and back of my head feels like its burning or on fire /squeezing pressure in forehead. If this final symptom goes away i would be 100% healed i feel or at least 90% 

I'm one of them. Just got home from gym and feel awesome. 

[[An...]]

I just finished up my first of three 20 min indoor stationary bike rides.

Have a great day to all my benzobuddies.

[[An...]]

1 hour ago, [[m...] said:

From others i talked to on reddit benzo withdrawals people that thought they were never healed said exercise was the only thing that helped them and that they do it daily

some guy pm'ed me said he thought he would never heal until he started working out everyday and taking care of hisself and semen retention

I havnt tried this method yet but im going to sign up to the gym next week after i get back from vacation

my symptoms arent as bad as most people here because i was on for a short time but i still have sharp head pains daily and back of my head feels like its burning or on fire /squeezing pressure in forehead. If this final symptom goes away i would be 100% healed i feel or at least 90% 

@[mr...] .......good to hear. What kind of gym are you thinking about joining? I prefer the 24/7 fitness centers b/c there are no time restrictions when you can workout. I often workout at 11PM at night. It is quiet, no crowds, and no waiting to use the gym equipment.

[[Si...]]

I work out a little every day, for my body.  I don't think it's helped my healing at all.  I still don't get any endorphins afterwards; sometimes I cry on the treadmill if I'm attacked by an adrenaline surge.  

[[mr...]]

On 17/04/2024 at 13:26, [[A...] said:

@[mr...] .......good to hear. What kind of gym are you thinking about joining? I prefer the 24/7 fitness centers b/c there are no time restrictions when you can workout. I often workout at 11PM at night. It is quiet, no crowds, and no waiting to use the gym equipment.

im also going to try the 24/7 gym

 

[[WU...]]

17 hours ago, [[S...] said:

I work out a little every day, for my body.  I don't think it's helped my healing at all.  I still don't get any endorphins afterwards; sometimes I cry on the treadmill if I'm attacked by an adrenaline surge.  

Which begs the question, why do you carry on putting yourself through it? I'm not convinced that forcing ourselves to exercise is the right thing to do, it should be natural and easy and make us feel better, not feel like a punishment!

[[Br...]]

Tolerance for exercise varies a lot from one individual to the next.  It's important to pay attention to your own response to exercise and make adjustments.  The object is to move your body but not to stress it.  @[Si...] - it seems like your body is sending you clear signals that your need to exercise more moderately and you need to ease up.  It may mean you need to be very gentle about exercise.

[[An...]]

28 minutes ago, [[B...] said:

Tolerance for exercise varies a lot from one individual to the next.  It's important to pay attention to your own response to exercise and make adjustments.  The object is to move your body but not to stress it.  @[Si...] - it seems like your body is sending you clear signals that your need to exercise more moderately and you need to ease up.  It may mean you need to be very gentle about exercise.

Ditto to what @[Br...] said!  Approach exercise just like your benzo SX-based taper. I never exercise intensely anymore like I did when I was younger. Some ppl simply don't like to exercise. Like a lot of things, you can start to enjoy it you do it regularly and it starts having a positive impact on your life like eating a really healthy diet as opposed to the junk food that most Americans eat and are addicted to. I used to be a junk food junkie. I hated whole plant-based foods when I began eating like this in 2013. I loathed it at first but now I really enjoy it + it keeps my weight in check and I am in better health. I still love the junk. It is delicious but I try to not eat it much anymore b/c too much of it will eventually make you fat and/or sick.