People who live with autoimmune disease and related conditions like fibromyalgia and Lyme know that exercise is good, but many of them have given it it up because of the pain and exhaustion they feel. The thing is, it’s exactly because of this pain and exhaustion that exercise is even more important. Here’s why.

Reduction of Physical Pain

Those of us living with autoimmune disease often experience physical pain - body aches, soreness, extreme tenderness, etc. It can hurt just to move. Well, perhaps counter-intuitively, the most important thing we can do to reduce that pain is to actually move. You see, as we limit movement by sitting all day, we make multiple issues worse. Our muscles get used to not working, so they get stiff, and with stiffness comes pain. Exercise keeps the muscles warm and moving. Exercise also increases bone density, helps maintain proper posture, and supports joint mobility, all of which reduce the stress on our body and can make us feel better.

Increased Cognitive Function and Brain Clarity

Brain fog is a common side effect of autoimmune diseases and related conditions like fibromyalgia and Lyme. It makes us feel like we can't think clearly, like our brains are all scrambled. When we exercise, we increase the flow of blood, which in turn brings more oxygen and glucose to the brain. Exercise also triggers the release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a natural chemical our body uses to repair brain cells. This is why exercise helps reduce the effects of brain fog while increasing short- and long- term brain health and memory retention.

Supports Controlling the Experience of Anxiety and Depression

Autoimmune disease and related conditions have a high correlation with anxiety and depression. There are chemical reasons for this as well as understandable non-chemical ones - when we don’t feel good and can’t live the life we want, it can make us anxious and depressed. Exercise boosts the feel-good chemicals that our body makes - endorphins, serotonin, and dopamine - and, when done correctly, helps us regulate our nervous system (more on that here). As a result, it reduces anxiety and depression, making it easier for us to function happily in our daily lives. 

Positive Impact on Hormone Regulation

This matters in so many ways. For women, exercise can help regulate menstrual cycles. Exercise also can help the body regulate insulin (your blood sugar hormone) as well as cortisol (the stress hormone). Better regulation of these hormones can lead to weight loss, and although I don't emphasize exercise specifically for weight control, it can help. It also helps improve sex drive (wink wink)!

Better Sleep

Regular exercise allows your body to better manage its Circadian rhythm, allowing you to have a more consistent sleep-wake cycle. The reduced stress, anxiety, and depression can also help you fall asleep faster and to go back to sleep if you wake up in the middle of the night. Studies have shown that women who exercise 30 minutes a day sleep more than women who don’t, and have also shown an improvement in sleep for people with insomnia.

Here’s the thing though - for people with autoimmune disease and related disorders, even though exercise should make us feel better, if we don’t do it right, it can make us feel worse. (Read about why.) It’s my mission to show you how to get stronger and feel better without getting into a cycle of flare-ups and worsening symptoms.