The benefit of exercise on improving emotional health is underrated. We need to change the way we view exercise; it does not just improve health, but study after study shows the benefits of exercise go beyond physical well-being. Working out takes your mind off worries and instantly eases anxiety boosts creativity and muscle up on mental illness. How? The article will help you to get clear with your question!
How Can Exercise Help
The process by which exercise plays a role in undermining mental illness symptoms should be clear to everyone. Engaging in physical activity does not provide you enjoyment, but it has a terrific impact on enhancing self-esteem and self-efficacy. In the light of biological mechanisms, workouts tend to cause changes in the behavior of chemical, endorphins. Endorphins ease anxiety and relieve pain.
Exercise also triggers other chemicals, dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin, which plays a huge role in regulating your mood – they are the same chemicals targeted by medication to cure mental illness. Exercising also reduces the amount of stress-causing hormone cortisol.
Top Five psychological benefits of exercise
Apart from the physical benefits of exercise like weight loss, reduced risk of blood pressure, heart diseases, and diabetes – there is no shortage of mental benefits of exercise too. Regular exercising assists in making you the refined version of yourself and helps keep your memory sharp and improves cognitive abilities and sleep health. It is also better to turn to gyms like Era Fit to get a bespoke workout plan. Here are the top five benefits that will push you to lace up the shoes and head back to the gym.
1. Exercises increase the brain’s BDNF levels.
The brain-derived neurotrophic factor or a ‘Brain Fertilizer’ is a protein that is responsible for maintaining brain cells’ life and assists in growing new ones. Low levels of BDNF are found in people with mental illnesses like anxiety and depression. Do you know? Exercise magically increases the level of the brain’s BDNF, leading up to improving mood and general well-being.
2. Exercise as a form of exposure therapy
Recall the feelings you experience when you are stressed? The heart races, the body tenses, or you become short of breath. Interestingly, sweat exercising does the same! Hence, exercise prepares you to expose anxiety symptoms but in a controlled condition and makes you less vulnerable to panic or anxiety attacks.
3. It improves your sleep health
Sleep deprivation adversely impacts work performance and makes you cranky when it comes to logical thinking. Fortunately, exercise can help with that. Engaging in physical activity increases body temperature, which eventually causes a calming impact on the mind leading to better zzz. Not to mention the role of physical activities in regulating circadian rhythm and built-in alarm clocks in our bodies that decide that when we feel lazy or when we are more alert. However, sleep experts also recommend not workout close to bedtime.
4. It creates mental energy and creativity
Physical activity improves brain power in several ways. It is evident from a study that cardiovascular activity creates new brain cells through a process called neurogenesis. It improves your cognitive abilities and prevents memory loss because of its role in strengthening the hippocampus (the crucial part of the brain that controls memory and listening).
5. It increases confidence
A well-defined muscular body that comes about from a regular workout plan contributes to adding up to a whopping boost of confidence. A slimmer physique and improved endurance are some of the benefits that improve your mind, body, and even soul.
How much exercise do you need?
For most healthy adults getting at least 150 minutes of aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activities a week is enough. Moderate aerobic exercises include swimming, walking, cycling, or brisk. In contrast, vigorous aerobic activities include aerobic dancing, resistance paddles, or activities like rock climbing. It is good to aim for a moderate thirty-minute exercise a day. However, if you want to lose weight or planning to achieve specific fitness goals, you need to aim higher.
Overcoming obstacles to workout
Having trouble with planning the workout plan or following through is a common problem with most people. Even the most devoted and enthusiastic among us fall off the workout wagon. It is not hard to get back on feet after the fitness hiatus. All you need is to think wisely about certain things that help to stick to a workout regimen.
You can overcome obstacles to work out by switching up a routine, taking baby steps like committing to 10 minutes exercise. Also, do exercise you enjoy, buy new fitness clothes, try out a new gym, join a fitness community, sign up for a race, remember why you started, and set realistic goals.