Exercise Basics (1-4)


       The last time I left a mental facility I weighed 314 pounds, was pre-diabetic and could barely walk because my feet were so swollen. I couldn't get my feet into my shoes, so I had to wear enormous flip-flops during winter! 

       Needless to say I found it very difficult to begin an exercise program. However, I started by accepting my situation and making peace with it. All I had was the determination to make my life better. That was the first step. Sheer determination to make positive changes in my life was the key. I am often asked how I began, and that is what I say. I accepted where I was and decided to make a change, no matter how difficult it was going to be. 

       As I stated in an earlier post, I gave up sugar. I threw away all the junk food that was in the house. What my family wanted to keep, they had to hide. That being said, I started my exercise program by walking. I wasn't able to go fast or far, but I did it anyway. The first time I walked I barely made it five minutes, and it was excruciating. I told myself constantly, throughout the day, that every master was once a beginner. Slowly I added distance, time and a faster pace to my walks. 

       That was the start of my journey. Now I am able to run on difficult outdoor trails that are full of hills. I realized that if I want to improve my life, my health and my overall wellbeing, I could. Start where you are, with what you have, and do it now! When all I could do was walk, I walked. When I realized I was eating junk food and sugar, I replaced it with fruit. 

       Below is an excellent video about how to start a walking program. Personally, I don't use a pedometer, health coach, or tracking software, but I know a few people that do. 
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As always, I wish you wonderful mental health, great exercising and great successes with eating healthy meals. If you, or someone you love, is severely depressed or anxious, please click the link to the right and you will be directed to the International Association for Suicide Prevention. It is a great resource, and is staffed by wonderful people. 
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       I had every intention of writing a post on all the benefits of exercising in the morning. I pulled together the research I've collected over the years and made an outline. I decided to see if there was a good video to add, and that's when I found this clip. Its message is short, simple and profound. In two minutes the main points of why exercising in the morning are covered beautifully. 

       All that I would add is that research has also shown that those who exercise in the morning have a better chance of making it a long-term habit. As Cedric Bryant, Phd, chief science officer with the American Council on Exercise has written, "Research suggests in terms of performing a consistent exercise habit, individuals who exercise in the morning do significantly better." I hope you find this video helpful. 
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As always I wish you wonderful mental health and great successes eating healthy meals. If you, or someone you love, is severely depressed or anxious, please click the link to the right and you will be directed to the International Association for Suicide Prevention. It is a great resource, and is staffed by wonderful people. 
Feel free to send your questions or comments to:


I have received many questions about how I stay motivated. There is no one thing that I do. I use many different methods, because I face many different challenges. I have pictures downloaded on my computer, they are set up to flip through as my screen saver. I also have one that stays visible, because it is set as the wallpaper. I have downloaded many pictures with motivational quotes saved in a file on my phone as well. When I am out and need a boost or I am craving junk food, I immediately pull it up and start reading the quotes on those pictures. I have a motivational calendar where I mark down what exercise I did each day. Here is my calendar for last month: 
I keep motivational pictures taped up all over my house. This one is on the cabinet door in my kitchen that I have to open every time I get a plate:

       I listen to motivational music. I have set up play lists on my phone, computer and have CDs in my car that get me going. Obviously, the music that motivates you may be completely different from what motivates me. Keeping it handy is the point. 

       I also watch many motivational clips on Youtube. I bookmarked and saved them to my channel for easy accessibility. I will be doing a post of nothing but motivational Youtube clips. Until then, here is one of my go-to videos. These two women are my heroes. They truly demonstrate what the human spirit can overcome. In case you are unaware, an Ironman competition is 140.6 miles of running, biking and swimming that must be completed in less that 17 hours (all in one day). These are the last few moments of that race for these women.



       I have a collection of uplifting and informative books. Most of them have absolutely nothing to do with running or exercising. I will also be putting up a post with my favorite books that lift my spirit and give me the courage to push forward. If you need one immediately, then Born to Run is a fascinating, inspirational and true story that deals with running/exercising. It has already sold over 3 million copies. I have lost count of how many times I have read it. 


       I have a collection of motivational movies that I frequently watch. As with everything else I have talked about, movies are a personal preference. The majority of my favorite motivational movies are documentaries that can be found on the internet and Netflix. 

       The point of all this is simply to say that I do many things to stay motivated. Having bipolar disorder coupled with an anxiety disorder means that I have to stay out in front of things. I have to do all of these things because they help me to stay on track, and when I do get off track they help me get back on. 

       Just as there is no silver bullet cure for mental illnesses, I have found that, for me, there is no silver bullet for getting and staying motivated. 
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As always, I wish you wonderful mental health and great successes at eating healthy meals. If you, or someone you love, is severely depressed or anxious, please click the link to the right and you will be directed to the International Association for Suicide Prevention. It is a great resource, and is staffed by wonderful people. 
Feel free to send your questions or comments to:


       I view exercise as a very powerful medication, and like any medication it can cause problems if overused. It took a long time for me to get to the point where overtraining became an issue, because, in the beginning, all I was able to do was walk for five or ten minutes a day. Since overtraining did become something that I have had to contend with, I feel obligated to cover it. 

       I have been hesitant to write about this because studies indicate that the vast majority of people get far too little exercise, not too much. However, this is an extremely important topic for two reasons. First, people with mental illnesses have been shown to be more susceptible to overtraining symptoms. Second, because we reap so many benefits from exercise, it can be easy to overdo things in the hope of getting even more relief from our symptoms. The problem with upping the intensity of an exercise too quickly or doing more and more exercise without a rest day, every so often, is that it can actually backfire. Here is a composite list with some of the symptoms of overtraining:  
  • Tension
  • Irritability
  • Restless sleep
  • Loss of sexual desire
  • Severe aches and pains
  • Constant fatigue
  • Declining athletic performance
More severe forms of overtraining symptoms:
  • Depression
  • Menstrual irregularities
  • Significant sleep problems
  • Prolonged muscle soreness
  • Markedly diminished athletic performance

       The biggest problem that I have found with overtraining is that I didn't recognize the symptoms I was experiencing as overtraining symptoms. Exercise works so well at relieving my tension, irritability, anxiety, sleeplessness, depression and mania, that when I start feeling those symptoms I often up my exercise intensity. Often, this works wonderfully and I pull through without a hitch. There are times though that I have found that this technique has made things worse. 

       I tried for quite some time to figure out a way to distinguish between the symptoms of overtraining and those of my depression, anxiety or bipolar disorder. I was going about the problem the wrong way. I was trying to somehow distinguish some small difference in the symptoms, but the symptoms are the same. The trick, I found, is to keep a simple exercise calendar. It has made all the difference. I don’t write lengthy journal entries with every detail of a workout. I found that I didn't have the patience to do that consistently. I simply write what I did on the date followed by a few summation words and a difficulty ranking between 1-5. For instance, on the fourth day of the month I might write: Trail Run 5.5 miles (4). Simply by glancing at that date I know that I did a rather fast paced run (by the 4) up and down hills (by it being a trail run) for 5.5 miles. If I see that the next day was similar, and the day after that I did Circuit Training 45 minutes (5), then I know that it would be wise to take a rest day. 

       If I don’t pay attention and keep track of what I have done, I have a tendency to overdo things. Then, I will start to get irritable; I’ll start losing sleep, and depression will start clouding my judgment. It can become a downward spiral from there. The harder I workout to alleviate my symptoms the worse they get, so I workout harder to try and fix the problem, and the next thing I know I’m in the middle of a full blown episode. Taking ten seconds to jot down a few words about my exercise sessions has helped me enormously. 

       Slowly upping distance, speed, duration, resistance or weight is the only way that I have found to avoid the pitfalls of overtraining. A general rule of thumb that many fitness experts recommend is to increase the duration or intensity of a workout by no more than 10% per week. I found that to be a little too much, too fast, for me. The point is, that it is only recommended to up exercise by 10% per week for healthy and fit individuals, so be careful. If overtraining does happen to occur, the cure is to simply cut back the intensity of your workouts and just walk for a few days. 
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As always I wish you wonderful mental health and great successes eating healthy meals. If you, or someone you love, is severely depressed or anxious, please click the link to the right and you will be directed to the International Association for Suicide Prevention. It is a great resource, and is staffed by wonderful people. 
Feel free to send your questions or comments to: