Mental health, even in this era of globalization, is subject to ignorance. The 10th of October every year is World Mental Health Day. However, it is the only day when we realize that mental health is a probing social issue.
Exercise is essential for the body in many ways – it helps keep you fit and healthy. Exercise also helps you maintain a healthy lifestyle while allowing you to experience life to the fullest. However, it is also an incredible activity to keep up with your mental health.
Before delving into how and why exercise is crucial for mental health, let’s first see what it actually is.
What Is Mental Health?
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 1 in every 13 people globally suffers from anxiety disorders. These range from being severe to minor but are prone to developing into bigger issues nonetheless.
WHO’s globally recognized definition of mental health states that “ it is a state of wellbeing in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”.
What Is Mental Illness?
When we look into what could disrupt mental fitness, it reveals various reasons. Problems associated with mental health are often referred to as ‘mental illnesses. These are defined as health conditions that involve changes in behavioral and emotional aspects of life that may be harmful to an individual’s health.
Problems related to mental health have the potential to drastically affect one’s life and daily life activities. These problems range in their intensity, however, every problem is harmful to an individual’s life.
Mental health-related issues are not necessarily illnesses, but they can lead to severe illnesses. Thus, you must take care of your mental wellness along with your physical fitness.
Let’s look at some reasons exercise is essential for mental wellbeing as well as physical health.
Why Is Exercise Essential For Mental Health?
Exercises such as aerobics and cardio improve physical health. Likewise, it also holds the potential to improve one’s mental wellbeing.
One: Decreased Levels Of Stress
Exercise reduces stress levels, something that causes the simplest of daily life activities to become difficult. When you indulge in physical activity, your heart rate increases thus reversing the brain damage induced by stress. It does so by stimulating the production of norepinephrine and endorphins.
Furthermore, any physical activity that you carry out helps your sympathetic and central nervous systems to better coordinate with one another. It in turn improves your cognitive abilities, which compliments your behavioral patterns and helps you maintain a better mood.
Thus, if you feel stressed out, getting up from your couch or bed and walking around can help a great deal. Walking around allows your muscles to move and blood to flow – because they are meant to do so.
Exercise Tip: Engage in Yoga
Various yoga postures are designed to relieve physical tension and allow your body to relax. Yoga postures require that you delve into a deep breathing pattern, thus allowing your body to relax and your mind to motivate a sharper focus.
Do your mental health a favor and exercise – it will help you develop better coping mechanisms to deal with stress.
Two: Exercise Helps Reduce Depression
Now if you believe that stress and depression are the same, well, they are not. You can be stressed over moving away from your family for study purposes, but it will not require you to go full berzerk on life. However, if you do have to move out of your parent’s house while you do not have a job and have a huge amount of rent to pay, well, that could turn into a depressive episode.
Depression needs a thorough medical diagnosis and crucial attention to detail. It cannot be dealt with single-handedly. Exercise helps you reduce depression, it does not eliminate it.
If you are going through an episode of depression, you need to engage in physical activity. It releases the feel-good chemicals in the brain called endorphins, that help you improve your disrupted sleeping patterns and ability to carry out the most common of chores. Moreover, use deep breathing techniques – they can supply a sufficient amount of oxygen to your brain and in turn motivate a relaxation response.
Tip: Try meditation in motion. It links your physical movement to your breathing patterns. This technique also supports improvements in balance and a sense of well-being.
Three: Improved Self-Esteem And Confidence
Mental health is often associated with feelings of low self-worth and low self-esteem. When an individual goes through episodes of mental illness or events leading up to it, he/she may be prone to losing confidence.
The benefits of physical activity are many if you are consistent and motivated enough to keep going. When you work out, you achieve plenty of things and it, in turn, boosts your confidence and self-esteem.
Did you try fitting into your old clothes and could not? And did that leave you questioning yourself? This self-doubt is dangerous and can lead to various health issues – both physical and mental. Thus, exercise, by improving your motivation and acceptance levels of yourself, helps improve esteem and confidence.
Tip: Practice self-love and gratitude.
Four: Exercise Induces Better Sleeping Patterns
We often have trouble sleeping at night, which results in many health issues. Thus, when you exercise well and let your body balance out the activity-to-rest ratio, it induces far better sleeping patterns.
It has been reported in many studies that people who sleep less and have sleeping problems build higher levels of stress over time. The American Psychological Association reports that people who get 8 hours of sleep every night report lower levels of stress.
Tip: Practice Qigong, an ancient Chinese healing form that includes controlled breathing, gentle movements, and meditation. It improves sleeping patterns and allows your body to better utilize energy.
Five: It Improves The Tone Of Life
When you engage in exercise, you take out time for yourself. In doing so, you improve your mood as well as remain energetic throughout the day. Exercising improves your mood and enables you to develop a new perspective towards life.
Moreover, it also enables you to break the boring tone of life and engage in activities that help you grow as a person.
Take Care Of Yourself
Life is difficult as it is. Now if you make room for issues related to mental and physical health, it gets worse. Thus, take care of your health. Exercise, because it is important for your peace of mind. The most important of all is gratitude and kindness, for yourself and everyone around you.
Be kind to everyone, because you never know what someone is going through. At the end of the day, it all depends upon how you perceive life and how optimistic you are about all that happens around you.
Also Read: 6 Wellness Tips To Improve Your Mental Health Now
“Just because no one else can heal or do your inner work for you, doesn’t mean you can, should, or need, to do it alone.”
Lisa Olivera