What You Might Not Know About Your Mental Health & Exercise

How exercise can improve your mental wellbeing.

Exercise is essential for good mental health. It's something we hear a lot about, and not for

nothing! The physical, psychological, and social benefits are well-established and backed by

research. But how does it work? Let’s talk about how physical exercise and mental health go

hand in hand.

That feeling after a good workout is comparable to none. You may have not wanted to workout

to begin with, especially if it was one of those days when your anxiety and depression were

weighing you down beyond control. You may have not wanted to but the relief and release you

end up with always make you feel better if not great. You may even find that you feel worse

when you don’t get a workout in, it’s common amongst many struggling with their mental health.

Exercise gives you an opportunity to get away from your thoughts, away from interruptions like

social media, work, news and even our friends and family (yeah because they can be annoying

and stressful at times too!). When we feel overwhelmed, the main thing we need in those

moments is a break, and when we’re surrounded by so much noise in life it can be hard to get

that break or find something to do that gives you relief.Going out for a run, heading to the gym,

playing sports, dancing and working out at home in a room away from everyone can give you

quiet, peace of mind and perspective.

Physical exercise pumps up those endorphin levels, the chemical produced by the brain and

spinal cord that produces that natural feel good high. Getting your heart rate up has the ability to

reduce stress-induced brain damage by stimulating the production of neurotransmitters like

dopamine and serotonin which together give you feelings of calm, focus, happiness and more.

Exercise also promotes neuroplasticity, the brain and nervous system’s ability to change their

activity in response to internal or external stimuli, which plays a big role in our learning, activity

and behaviours. Exercise regulates our body in a number of ways and its ability to help with

mental health issues naturally is unmatched.

The list of benefits that exercise provides is far beyond the scope of this text, the physiological

benefits may be a small portion of its benefits but our physiological health is a major part of our

overall health.The next time you’re feeling anxious, depressed, even angry, set some time out

for yourself to get active. Make a note of how you feel before, get into it truly, give it your all and

note how you feel after. Exercise may not take away all your problems but it will definitely relieve

some stress and motivate you to pull it together. Get moving, you’ve got nothing to lose and

everything to gain.

“Exercise is the key not only to physical health but to peace of mind.”

-Nelson Mandela