Winter enjoyable is a staple for residing in Canada. It’s a frequent sight to see individuals having fun with the nice outdoor and doing actions like strolling canine, mountain climbing, snowshoeing, snowboarding and tobogganing. Not solely is out of doors exercise a coping technique for these lengthy darkish days of winter – it has physiological advantages for each the thoughts and physique. Let’s take tobogganing for example and speak about how this exercise advantages your coronary heart, lungs, muscle tissue, joints, and even your mind.
Cardiovascular advantages
Have you ever ever observed that you’re a little wanting breath after climbing up a hill whereas pulling a sled behind you? This phenomenon could be attributed to that shorter period burst of bodily exercise adopted by the remainder on the high (and naturally sliding again down).
Doing repeated bursts of upper depth bodily exercise adopted by a interval of relaxation is thought in health literature as interval coaching.
This type of train improves the well being of your cardiovascular system (coronary heart, lungs and blood vessels). Simply bear in mind, the bottom line is to take sufficient time to get better and catch your breath on the high of the hill earlier than plummeting again down and repeating the cycle!
Muscular advantages
Climbing hills makes us use our hip extensors, knee extensors and ankle plantar flexors (glutes, quads and calf muscle tissue in different phrases).
These muscle tissue are additionally used for strolling and operating beneath regular circumstances. Many athletes will use hill and stair climbing to strengthen these muscle teams for athletic efficiency. Tobogganing simply makes this type of coaching numerous enjoyable on the identical time.
Bones and joints
All bodily exercise strengthens our bones in addition to the connective tissue and cartilage (easy lining) in our joints. These advantages are enhanced by including “resistance.” Within the case of tobogganing, we’re resistance coaching by carrying the load of a sled up the hill or by merely working towards the resistance of gravity by carrying with the burden of our personal physique uphill.
Mind
Once we train, our physique produces chemical substances referred to as endorphins. When an elevated stage of endorphins flow into in our mind, we expertise ache aid, pleasure and a way of well-being.
So with all of this in thoughts, the following time you’re in a position to safely go outdoor for some train, seize your toboggan and hit the slopes for all the bodily, psychological and emotional advantages of exercising within the Canadian winter.
Bear in mind to put on acceptable security gear whereas tobogganing and don’t neglect – if you’re experiencing any bodily discomfort and wish to search therapy, be at liberty to guide an appointment on-line.
This weblog initially appeared on Lifemark.ca and was written by Meg Smith, physiotherapist at Stonetown Physiotherapy & Sports activities Accidents Clinic.
