While exercise may be the last thing that your child wants to do when trying to sustain their sobriety, it’s an important integral part that will allow their efforts to go much further. Practicing a ritual of regular workouts has been shown in many cases to lead to a new found feeling of achievement. In addition, exercising releases endorphins, the feel good drug, that many addicts are chasing through alcoholism.
Builds Self-Confidence
When a person admits their alcoholism it can be a big blow to their self-confidence level. The whole recovery process can be a sensitive time where they may constantly feel unentitled. Exercise can help them to feel healthier, which leads to feeling more confident about other areas of their life as well.
By getting them to start a regular exercise program, even only a couple days a week, they can start to regain their self-confidence. The trick is to ensure the program is very easy to follow for the out of practice. We suggest starting with a 10 to 15-minute walk twice a week and then increasing the intensity from there. You don’t want to make the program to rigorous where they are unable to accomplish each workout, as that will continue to decrease their self-confidence.
Offers Commitment For Time
A big part of an addict’s struggle is the constant thoughts of what they are not allowed to have. It’s human nature to think about the things that you have been told you are no longer allowed to have. Exercise can help to fill in the time gaps and give your child something to look forward to. Planning workout times, the exercises they will do, and other things associated with working out can be a necessary way to avert their attention from the thoughts of alcohol.
Outlet For Anger And Reducing Stress
During the recovery process, there are times where the addict may find it difficult to handle their past actions. Feelings of anger and rage may pop up and exercise is a safe outlet for these feelings. Expressing their emotions as compared to bottling them up is a necessity when recovery from alcoholism. In addition, exercise is a great way to reduce stress as it can be a go-to-tool when your child feels overwhelmed.
As you can see, exercise plays a crucial role in the successful recovery of an addict. You should try to encourage your child to participate in some form of exercise, no matter how small, so they can receive all the benefits listed above.
Need to get started on your recovery journey? Contact us today (800) 411-8019