Without a doubt, physical fitness and exercise is one of the most often overlooked tools that people can use to fight addiction. Our tendency to be lazy is what prevents people from taking full advantage of physical fitness as a means to addiction recovery.
Everyone will agree with you that this is a great idea. And some will even agree that regular, vigorous exercise can make a huge difference in the struggle to stay clean and sober. But it will not matter much because people will fail to act on these convictions.
There are even recovery programs out there that focus exclusively on getting in shape as a means to sobriety. Working out and achieving better fitness is quite literally the entire program of recovery. And amazingly enough, this actually works for some people! So you can imagine the vast benefits that regular exercise could have on others in the recovery community, if only they would give it a chance.
Most people in recovery are suffering from either depression or anxiety to at least a small degree. Others have a full dual diagnosis and are suffering from either of these disorders to a greater extent. Regardless of the situation, it is almost going to be universally beneficial for anyone in recovery to use exercise to their advantage. The benefits of doing so on a regular basis are just too great to ignore. It is such a simple yet powerful form of addiction help. There are several reasons that this is the case:
1) Regular exercise helps establish stability in recovery, and helps to stabilize emotional states.
2) Regular exercise gives a huge endorphin boost, making the addict feel better physically, even when they are finished exercising.
3) Regular exercise gives huge long term benefits, improving overall holistic health and also boosting self esteem.
Anyone who is not using fitness and exercise as part of their recovery plan is really missing out!
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