Everybody knows that staying fit and having a healthy diet can improve your physical well-being, but not everybody realises the effect it can have on your mind as well.
Regular exercise can have a positive impact on depression, anxiety, ADHD and PTSD, as well as relieving stress, improving memory, helping you sleep better and boosting your overall mood.
How exercise can help with depression
Studies have shown that exercise can treat depression just as effectively as anti-depressant medication. Studies have also shown that maintaining a regular exercise schedule can prevent you from relapsing.
Exercise is a powerful depression fighter for many reasons: it promotes changes to the brain including neural growth and reduced inflammation, and it can also serve as a distraction and help you focus on something else.
How exercise can help with anxiety and stress
Physical activity helps bump up the production of your brain’s feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins. Although this is often referred to as a runner’s high, a rousing game of tennis or a nature hike can also contribute to the same feeling.
It’s meditation in motion. After a fast-paced game of racquetball or several laps in the pool, you’ll often find that you’ve forgotten the day’s irritations and concentrated only on your body’s movements.
As you begin to regularly shed your daily tensions through movement and physical activity, you may find that this focus on a single task — and the resulting energy and optimism — can help you remain calm and clear in everything you do.
It improves your mood. Regular exercise can increase self-confidence, it can relax you, and it can lower the symptoms associated with mild depression and anxiety. Exercise can also improve your sleep, which is often disrupted by stress, depression and anxiety. All these benefits can ease your stress levels and give you a sense of command over your body and your life.
How exercise can help with ADHD
Physical activity boosts the brain’s dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin levels, all of which improve focus and attention.
How exercise can help with PTSD
Evidence suggests that focusing on your body and how it feels during exercise can help your nervous system move out of the immobilisation response that characterises PTSD or trauma.
If you feel any of this relates to you, feel free to get in contact and make the change you need.