A day’s plan begins in the morning. A refreshing morning is a good time for morning exercises. Many morning exercisers can be seen in parks and mountains early in the morning. However, medical experts remind that there are many people who do not use the right morning exercise methods.
Taboo 1: Exercise on an empty stomach
Some people like to do morning exercises first and then have breakfast, which is unscientific. Especially for middle-aged and elderly people, they should eat some food before morning exercises. The nutrients taken in the previous night are digested and absorbed overnight, making the body in a low metabolic stage when getting up.
If you do not make some supplements before exercise and do not take in carbohydrates, the main source of energy during exercise is the fat in the body. At this time, the free fatty acids in the blood will increase significantly. Fatty acids can become the main cause of arrhythmia and even sudden death. But don’t eat too much to prevent insufficient blood supply to various parts of the body during exercise.
Taboo 2: Eat immediately after exercise
In the early morning, the body has not yet eliminated the low body temperature and low basal metabolism caused by a night’s sleep. If the warm-up before exercise is not sufficient and the warm-up is not in place, especially in autumn and winter, the cold air in the early morning will temporarily cool down the nasal cavity, trachea, and esophagus, causing the body to “cold adapt”.
After exercise, if you eat hot food such as freshly made porridge, wontons, and soy milk immediately, the capillaries and slightly larger blood vessels of the esophageal mucosa layer and nearby tissues in the cold adaptation state will not be able to withstand the stimulation of over-hot food all at once, and temporary regulatory function disorders will occur.
Therefore, after morning exercise, do not eat over-hot food immediately. You should drink a few sips of warm water first to allow the esophagus and stomach to adapt and avoid damage.
Avoid three: exercise every day
Some people have developed the habit of morning exercise every day, but this is not scientific. Morning exercise should also depend on the specific situation of the individual. Don’t exercise for the sake of exercise. If you feel unwell, such as having a cold, fever, or some diseases are in the acute stage or onset stage, you should avoid morning exercises. People who did not sleep well the day before are advised to stop morning exercises.
Note 1: Drink some water before morning exercises
In the early morning, the body is relatively dehydrated and the blood viscosity is relatively high. During exercise, the breathing rhythm is accelerated, the skin pores expand, and obvious or insignificant sweating occurs, which will aggravate the body’s dehydration. Even if you drink a lot of water after exercise, it often takes half an hour for water to enter the body and participate in metabolism before reaching the various tissues of the body. For a dehydrated body, it is too late.
Proper hydration before morning exercises can increase the circulating blood volume and reduce blood viscosity. But remember to replenish water in small amounts and multiple times. Don’t drink too much water at one time. 150 to 200 ml is appropriate at one time to avoid suddenly increasing the burden on the heart and gastrointestinal tract. After 15 to 20 minutes, replenish 150 to 200 ml. People who exercise a lot can add an appropriate amount of salt and sugar to the water. Drinking water can reduce blood concentration, widen the arterial lumen, and promote blood circulation, which helps prevent sudden cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases during exercise.
Note 2: It is best to do morning exercises after the sun comes out
Some people like to go out for exercise at dawn, which is also unscientific. After a night, there are more pollutants in the air, and breathing these polluted air will have a harmful effect on the human body. After the sun comes out, plant photosynthesis is enhanced, the oxygen content in the air increases, and pollutants are diluted and decomposed in the air to a certain extent, and the air quality will be relatively better. Under such circumstances, morning exercises are more suitable for human metabolism. On the other hand, the temperature rises after the sun comes out, which can also avoid the sudden stimulation of cold air on blood vessels and reduce the chance of myocardial infarction and cerebral infarction.
Note 3: Outdoor exercise is best for half an hour
The time for morning exercise is generally 30 minutes, and middle-aged and elderly people can do more exercises to enhance muscle coordination and flexibility, such as slow walking and Tai Chi, which will maintain the stability of muscles and organs. There are often aunties doing strenuous exercise in the community. This kind of activity is not suitable for elderly patients with hypertension. When choosing sports, elderly patients with hypertension should go to specialists for advice. You can choose aerobic exercise, such as walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, Tai Chi, etc. Take deep breaths during exercise to expel more carbon dioxide, which can relax blood vessels and play a role in lowering blood pressure.
Note 4: Indoor exercise, the air should flow smoothly
Sometimes, due to weather reasons, you can only exercise indoors. At this time, you should pay attention to some things. Middle-aged and elderly people can do some simple exercises, such as squats, lunges, etc. If the body allows, you can also do sit-ups or dumbbell exercises, but you must pay attention to the amount of exercise. It should not be too much. Generally, it is enough to control it to half of the amount of outdoor exercise.
When exercising indoors, you must pay attention to the smoothness of the air and do not exercise in a closed environment. In addition, you can play some soothing music when exercising to adjust your mood and atmosphere.
Note 5: Patients with chronic diseases should be careful about morning exercise
Old people with irregular heartbeat, poor kidney function, anemia and liver problems should be careful not to do morning exercise, or do some light exercise under the guidance of sports medicine experts. Diabetics are least suitable for morning exercise; for those with cardiovascular problems, it is recommended that the most suitable time to exercise is in the afternoon or evening. From 6 to 9 in the morning, the platelet aggregation rate of the human body is high, which is easy to form blood clots.