Exercise is an excellent way to support our immune system and improve our overall health.
Regular moderate activities, such as walking or cycling, help to boost the circulation of immune cells within our blood stream. Immune cells play a key role in fighting off infections and hence exercise helps keep those little colds and viruses at bay.
BoDI has spoken in a past blog about the impact of exercise on sleep and how exercising each day helps promote restful sleep, improving sleep quality.
Exercise has been shown to improve our stress management through improving physiological response to stress resulting in strengthening our stress resilience, again resulting in a positive impact on our immune system.
People are focused on staying active to benefit our body through improved fitness, mobility and strength and supporting us to be able to continue with our activities of daily living with ease and reduced injury risk. However, exercise offers so much more and so staying active becomes more than just benefiting your body; you’re really helping your body defend itself against illness and keep you well.
The Flip Side of The Immune System and Exercise Relationship
When talking about the impact of exercise on our immune system, what we must consider is when exercise can actually flip from having a positive effect on our immune system to having a detrimental impact on it.
Intense workouts or overtraining can lead to a temporary drop in immune function. This
drop lowers our defence system making us more vulnerable to infections. The “open window” effect refers to this vulnerability where our bodies are less able to fight off germs after extreme exertion.
Additionally, pushing yourself too hard, particularly when it well above the capacity of your physical tolerance, we see an increase in injuries, and even hormonal imbalances, which can further weaken your immune response. Finding a balance between staying active whilst applying the progressive overload principle and allowing time for recovery is essential.
What Does all This Mean for Me
You might be surprised to learn that even simple activities can have a big impact on your immunity. 30 minutes of brisk walking several times a week can significantly boost your immune function. Do not be disheartened if that feels too much for you. Accumulating bouts of 10 minutes over the course of a day is often more achievable and realistic than a 30-minute block for some.
Remember Heidi’s favourite saying, ‘something is better than nothing’. If you are not pacing your activity appropriately based on your health needs and tolerated capacity, then the ‘stress’ from the exercise may not maximise the desired immune system benefits. This is where BoDI’s Exercise Physiologists come in handy as they will assess the appropriateness of your activity program for you, rather than a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.
Combining the benefits of exercises and social support, such as at Body Dynamics where you have a little community of ‘gym buddies’ or through group classes, not only can improve physical well-being, but may enhance our mood and reduce stress, all having a positive impact on our immunity. As our immune function declines as we age, this becomes even more important to maintain our immunity as we have get more candles on our birthday cake.
So next time you think you can’t be bothered, reminding yourself of the long-term positive immune system outcome from moderate activity, might just be the motivator you need to get you moving.
