Swear Your Way to Better Fitness

Swear Your Way to Better Fitness
Fit young man in sportswear focused on lifting a dumbbell during an exercise class in a gym

(HealthyLifeHacks.net) – Every workout is an opportunity to give it our all. How hard we push our bodies can determine how far each session takes us. We can optimize our results by ensuring we properly fuel ourselves and use that energy as effectively as possible.

Some experts have investigated the impacts of swearing during exercise, and, as bizarre as it might sound, they might be onto something. Check out what they’ve discovered.

The Effects of Swearing On Fitness

The connection is a strange one, but swearing out loud can affect our bodies in ways that shouting out other random words can’t replicate. One study demonstrated the impacts of swearing on both strength and power using two separate sets of tests.

The first group, consisting of 29 subjects, underwent the Wingate Anaerobic Power Test, which gives a good measurement of physical fitness. The second group, which had 52 subjects, had their strength challenged with an isometric handgrip test.

In both groups, subjects performed better when they were screaming obscenities. They have yet to explain the connection, but the results are compelling. Surprisingly, despite notable improvements in subject performance while cursing, researchers found no changes in blood pressure, heart rate or skin conductance.

The Power of the Spoken Word

We have more power than we realize — power in our minds and in our spoken words. Science might not have pinned down the measurable connections, but a look at practices that make use of the mind-body connection may offer some additional clues.

The best example is karate. Practitioners learn early on to use kiai — a release of emotional and physical energy in the form of a loud exhale — when performing particular power moves. We use kiai to channel the breath and focus our power into our action. While it doesn’t require a specific word, it does require extra focus, which could be a big part of the magic.

Mantra in meditation could offer another key. Using mantra teaches us that there’s power in every word we breathe. It may be the case that we assign that power, making personal word choice important: If we believe a word can improve our performance, maybe that alone can make a difference.

The next time a workout seems too grueling, let out a good swear word and see what happens. Researchers might not know why it helps, but their findings indicate a good expletive may offer a physical boost. Be it the distraction of saying the unmentionable or the power we infuse in the words themselves, we may be able to use the effects to improve the impacts of our fitness routines. For the sake of decency, however, it’s best to reserve this practice for private workouts.

~ Here’s To Your Healthiest Life!

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