All my life I've exercised.
Grief robs you of routine and lately, slowly I've been getting back into it. I was just thrown off and felt lethargic.
It's a core philosophy of mine. I have to take care of this body and the American diet and sedentary lifestyle is a slow death to flab and health problems. A study reported 1 out of 6 American health care dollars is going into diet/exercise related problems that are entirely preventable.
I've found that going through an exercise routine even in grief will give your mind and feelings a break. The blood will be flowing and the endorphins are just firing and it makes a bad day a better day. For me an active, healthy life-style is just a part of me and not a 'to-do' list. It's just a part of me to be healthy and active because it's just plain good for you.
Emotionally you can drag yourself into the dumps with sugar mood swings or feel bad about your body because you're just plain out-of-shape. I've been exercising my entire life and it makes a world of difference. If you don't respect and care for your body it will come back to haunt you.
Grief by itself is a monumental process to journey, but exercising and getting your body healthy makes that journey a bit shorter. Even a short walk, or a brief fun is sufficient. For me the P90x system of video exercise by Tony Horton has been a tremendous blessing because Tony is crazy and his workouts routine are so full of variety I never get bored.
Even my wife said lately, "Honey, you look good." At least that comment alone makes me feel a bit better dealing with the loss of my father.