It’s no secret that being an entrepreneur is challenging and can lead to chronic stress. Therefore, learning healthy ways to manage your stress can help you improve your overall health and grow your business! One of the best ways to manage stress is with exercise!
Before I dive further into this article, I want you to pause for a moment. Take a deep breath in and inhale, hold your breath for a count of one, two, three… And then exhale for a count of one, two, and three….
How did that feel?
Did you notice your heart rate slow down? Did you feel more aware of your breathing? Did you feel the pressure you were holding inside of your body slowly dissipate? If you did, great! Slow breathing has been shown to activate your parasynthetic nervous system which is your body’s system to help you relax!
Now that you’re a little more relaxed, I have a few questions for you!
As a business owner, are you consistently swamped with work?
Do you always feel one step behind trying to catch up on all of the chores on your “to-do” list each day?
Do you toss and turn in bed at night thinking about all the things you should have accomplished that day, but didn’t?
Are you in a constant state of fight or flight trying to balance business and family life?
If you ever feel this way, you’re not alone.
At some point in our business lives, every entrepreneur has experienced a hectic set of circumstances that left them feeling overwhelmed. Maybe you experience stress every day of your life. If you do, I want to gently remind you that chronic stress can lead to sickness, depression, and make you feel overwhelmed.
I understand, you can’t always remove the triggers that are causing your stress, however, I do want to encourage you that there are healthy ways to cope with daily stress. One proven way to cope with stress is exercise.
Exercise has been shown to naturally increase “endorphins” in your body and provide health benefits such as improved blood pressure, heart rate, sleep, weight loss and overall health. Endorphins are the “feel good” chemicals that are also linked to an elevation in mood. As a business owner, the benefits of exercise outweigh the risks!
Use the following 4 tips to make exercise a part of your business strategy.
Tip # 1: Plan Your Workouts: Just like you plan your sales goals, your meetings and other elements needed to run a successful business, plan your daily, weekly and monthly workouts and be date and time specific (Ex. Mondays’ Wednesdays’ and Fridays’ I will workout for 30-minutes from 6:30 am-7:00 am).
Tip # 2: Make it Fun: Find a form of exercise that you enjoy. The more you enjoy the exercise you choose, the more likely you are to stick with it. Try various types of exercise until you find at least two different exercises that you like and want to do on a consistent basis.
Tip # 3: Get in 30-Minutes: It recommended that adults get 30-minutes of moderate physical activity 5- days per week and at least 2-days of resistance-training in order to reap health benefits. If you can’t get in 30 minutes of exercise in one session, break your workouts into 3-10 minute bursts of exercise.
Tip # 4: Write It Down: Once you create your exercise plan, add it to your calendar. Use your smartphone or write your workouts down on a sticky-note and hang it somewhere you see on a consistent basis.
Your Health is Your Greatest Business Asset
As a business owner, you are faced with numerous daily challenges to run your business. This can lead to stress which in return can lead to poor mental, physical and emotional stress that can lead to poor productivity which can lead to poor business performance. It’s truly a domino effect!
You can get ahead of your stress by committing to scheduling exercise as a part of your everyday business goals. Exercise is a great way to increase feel good endorphins that can reduce your stress and improve your overall health. Not sure where or how to start your fitness and exercise journey, check out our DIY fitness program Fit-N-5 designed for busy individuals like yourself!
Here’s to keeping you well!
Article Written By:
Fitness Olympian, 13 x Self-Published Author, 2019 Exceptional Woman of Color Honoree, 2017 Mental & Physical Health Advocate Honoree, 2016 Best Personal Trainer on the Gulf Coast Honoree and CEO of Well Content 4 U Wellness Company, Laticia “Action” Jackson has been called one of the most dynamic, energetic and dynamic Health and Wellness Speakers!
Laticia “Action” Jackson’s successful wellness career spans over 20 years and has been an amazing journey. Over this span of time she has used her education, experience and passion to transform health policies, healthcare systems and make environmental changes needed to improve the health outcomes for diverse communities, military establishments and corporations.
She has been featured in over 30 health and fitness magazines such as Black Doctors.Org, Oxygen Fitness Magazine Australia, Muscle and Fitness Hers, Flex Magazine, The Council on Aging and Writers Life Magazine where she provides insight and expert advice on various health and wellness topics.
You will often find her featured on TV stations such as NBC News, Seattle’s King 5, WEAR Channel 3, WSRE, Blab TV, CW 31, ABC 10, FOX 40 and other stations where she educates communities on public health issues such as domestic violence, minority health, chronic disease prevention, women’s health, obesity and heart disease.
Her dedication to ensuring individuals have the education, awareness and resources to improve their health outcomes has provided her the opportunity to present her engaging and interactive presentations to companies such as The American Heart Association, Accenture, UC Davis Medical Center, Desert Oasis Healthcare, HARC, Microsoft, Progressive Church, Center of Praise Ministries and numerous other companies and faith-based establishments where she has elicited a positive impact on thousands of individuals health and well-being.
Her passion to provide evidence-based health information on the “how” behind getting healthy and fit led Action to creating Changing the Norm(™) Wellness Program for African-American Women, Fit-N-5 (™) Fitness Program for busy working individuals and Healthy Balanced You(™) Women’s Corporate Wellness Program for today’s overworked, overwhelmed and overstretched working woman.
Action’s is on a mission to continue transforming the health and lives of people one wellness presentation, one fitness workshop and one online corporate health program at a time!
