Exercise is Medicine:
How movement can help retrain your autonomic nervous system.
Autonomic dysfunction, or dysautonomia, refers to a group of conditions where the autonomic nervous system (ANS) doesn’t regulate bodily functions like heart rate, blood pressure, digestion, temperature, or blood flow correctly. For people living with dysautonomia, everyday activities like standing, walking, or even sitting upright can trigger dizziness, rapid heart rate, fatigue, and discomfort.
This video and blog highlight an empowering perspective: exercise isn’t just about fitness, it’s a therapeutic tool that can help retrain your nervous system and improve how your body manages symptoms. So if you have been told to “just exercise more” or “it’s just deconditioning”, I hope this post helpful. We will breakdown how to safely initiate exercise to help rebuild your capacity and improve your quality of life without crashing.
Why Exercise Matters for Dysautonomia
Here are the key reasons exercise is considered “medicine” in dysautonomia:
1. Retrains the Autonomic Nervous System
Targeted movement can help the ANS improve its regulation of heart rate and blood pressure over time. This process is gradual, but consistent movement provides the nervous system with stimuli that encourage adaptive responses rather than defensiveness.
2. Improves Circulation and Blood Flow
Dysautonomia often involves poor blood return to the heart when upright, which causes dizziness and fatigue. Movement, especially in positions that reduce orthostatic stress, enhances venous return and supports better cardiovascular responses.
3. Builds Tolerance and Resilience
Exercise helps increase physical tolerance to daily activities. Over weeks and months, even short, gentle bouts of movement can cumulatively strengthen your body’s ability to handle upright and upright-related stresses.
How to Exercise When You Have Dysautonomia
Here are practical strategies to make exercise safe and effective:
Start Slowly
Begin with gentle movement and short durations, even 5–10 minutes at a time. It’s not about intensity; it’s consistency. You should be exercising at an intensity that you can do daily!
Recumbent or Supported Positions First
Starting in gravity limited positions, such as recumbent bikes, rowing machines, or swimming, are usually better tolerated initially because they limit stress on the ANS while still improving cardiovascular fitness and circulation. Starting in a position that allows you to perform daily is the best place to start.
Progress Gradually
As your tolerance improves, you can gently increase duration and incorporate more upright movement. Progression should be guided by your symptoms, note that some progressions will be faster than others. Every time you change the stimulus, increase duration, intensity or increase gravity the nervous system will have to recalibrate to that new demand.
Include Strength Training
Building leg and core strength helps with blood return from the lower body and supports overall functional capacity. Start light and increase slowly.
What Being “Medicine” Really Means
Dysautonomia doesn’t have a single cure. Instead, movement becomes part of a holistic treatment approach that includes pacing, medical care, hydration and salt management, compression garments and psychological support. This aligns with broader clinical recommendations that physical activity and structured exercise are among the most effective tools to help improve autonomic regulation and quality of life when used appropriately.
Exercise can be one of the most powerful tools in managing dysautonomia, not because it makes symptoms disappear instantly, but because it helps your body adapt, strengthen, and function more smoothly over time. Think of movement as a long-term investment in your nervous system’s resilience: with patience, consistency, and proper support, it can open a pathway to better days.
Looking for more guidance on where to get started? Schedule a connection call and see if my programs are a good fit for you!