Bring it on and Break a Sweat!

On your journey to a healthier, happier weight, fitness will always be one of the first and foremost steps to take. People often embrace the medicine ball, resistance band and suspension trainer but are you embracing sweat? That glistening, glossy liquid tells you that you’re burning calories and has a host of other benefits for the body, so start thinking of sweat as liquid gold instead of something you want to wash off as soon as possible.

Sweating lowers risk of developing kidney stones

Not many of us would think to associate salty sweat with our bones or kidneys but sweating actually expels excess salt and retains calcium in our bones. Kidney stones form when salt and calcium accumulate within the kidneys and urine, so sweating often and drinking plenty of water are very effective ways to prevent these stones from forming.[1]

Sweat serves as a natural antibiotic

Since 2013, researchers have looked to the crystal structures of peptides secreted by sweat glands and their natural antibiotic properties as a future platform in redesigning antibiotic drugs, thereby reducing the wide-spread bacterial resistance medical staff have battled in recent decades.[2]

Sweating facilitates cell repair and decreases inflammation

Fitness truly acts as a trigger that activates a series of very positive bodily functions. Getting your heart pumping and pushing yourself to reach the point at which your body needs to sweat triggers the body to begin producing heat shock proteins (HSP) that act as physical protection for other proteins that shouldn’t get damaged. Additionally, the body starts reproducing and repairing proteins while also limiting inflammation.[3]

The more you sweat, the more stable your hydration becomes after working out

They say that we are mostly made of water, so you can imagine the importance of maintaining a proper salt and water balance within the body. If we lose too much salt, we experience post-workout fatigue, muscle cramps and even decreased strength. Bummer. However, the more often you reach that sweaty climax in a work-out routine, the better your body gets at conserving the right levels of salt and water.[4]

Cultivate a different kind of glow beyond the sweat

Should you rinse or wash the sweat away? Medical dermatologist and founder of his own practice, Neil Sadick of NYC warns that you need to wash your face as soon as you finish a workout in order to avoid causing acne breakouts, which occur due to sweat-breeding yeast. An important note, however, is that the surface oil that sweat produces acts as protection and moisturizer for the skin. This means you ought to wash your face only when it’s excessively oily and that, otherwise, a simple rinse will do.[5]

Overall, your body needs sweat to maintain luminous skin, strong bones, balanced electrolytes and hydration. It needs to break a sweat for a boost to your immunity and cellular health. It’s not ultimately just the act of getting your heart pumping that will make you lose weight and feel good, it’s sustained, heavy, dripping sweat. Embrace it.

Regaining the body that you imagine for yourself takes courage, lots of sweat and, sometimes, a little extra help. Experts in medical travel exist across the globe and you can find that assistance you need in the most unexpected of places, like Central Europe. For information on the weight loss procedures performed at our Czech clinic, check out this link here.

Sources:

[1] Borreli, Lizette. “Sweat It Out! 5 Surprising Health Benefits of Sweating That Actually Don't Stink.” Medical Daily, Medical Daily LLC, 7 Nov. 2014, www.medicaldaily.com/sweat-it-out-5-surprising-health-benefits-sweating-...

[2] Song, Chen, et al. “Crystal Structure and Functional Mechanism of a Human Antimicrobial Membrane Channel.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 110, no. 12, 19 Mar. 2013, pp. 4586–4591., doi:10.1073/pnas.1214739110. 

[3] Gainsburg, Marissa. “12 Reasons Why Sweating Is So Freaking Good for You.” Women's Health, Hearst Magazine Media, 8 Dec. 2017, www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a19973001/sweat-benefits/. 

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.