Moving your body is a great way to reduce stress and improve wellbeing. Exercise eases perceptions of stress and gives us a positive routine in our lives.
Here are three exercise types that can help us manage stress:
Examples include power walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming. Cardio workouts improves the heart (cardio) and blood vessels (vascular system). And it is the most direct way to gain fitness and more daily energy.
By increasing your heart rate and blood flow, your body releases endorphins and other feel-good chemicals. These offer a natural mood boost and ease the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Higher intensity workouts show anti-depressant benefits, but in those who feel fatigued, shorter, lower-intensity workouts may also be effective. For those with anxiety who also feel fatigued, research supports that shorter sessions, even a brisk walk for 10 minutes, can be effective for a stress release.
Examples include training with free-weights, strength equipment, and barbell movements such as the squat, deadlift and bench press. These exercises primarily improve muscle strength and power, but they also benefit mental health. Research has used strength training to significantly reduce stress and depression. It also benefits those with anxiety, easing symptoms even before strength changes become apparent!
Strength training is a great way to show your muscles some love, but you may gain even more from a blended workout approach. This idea is supported by research. For instance, studies suggest that cardio exercise alone or a combination of strength + cardio deliver greater mental health benefits than strength training alone. This indicates that well-rounded exercise plans are optimal for wellbeing.
Examples include yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong or Pilates. These exercises combine physical movement with mindfulness and breathing techniques. And by helping us gain strength, flexibility and coordination, research shows these movements enhance balance and posture.
By noticing moment-to-moment sensations, mind-body exercise is great for stress management. They are mentally engaging, leaving no time for thoughts about past regrets or future worries. Indeed, mind-body interventions reduce mind-wandering and improve focus and attention.
Exercise is a potent trigger for beneficial changes in the body. Even a single workout can improve mood! And over time, more adaptations accrue, helping us gain more physical and mental energy.
At least four changes explain why motion is the potential for stress relief:
Some of the chemical changes when we exercise occur within 5-10 minutes. Rapid effects include the release of dopamine, adrenalin, and endorphins. These act as natural mood-boosters and reduce pain perception.
As workouts exceed the ten minute mark, we also begin to release factors that support brain cells in making new connections and help us focus. And we may release more mood-enhancing molecules in the brain, including endogenous cannabinoids. Exercise causes endocannabinoid release in the body as part of the elated feeling that occurs when we workout. All together, these changes buffer us against stress and help us avoid the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Every workout involves a temporary physical stress. But after the session, exercise helps us shift out of the stress response and move on to recovery. Studies demonstrate this idea by showing that exercise reduces cortisol levels, a stress hormone. This makes it easier to find a calm mindset and become less reactive to stress in our lives.
Research also confirms this post-exercise relaxation by measuring heart rate variability (HRV). This is the variation in time between each heartbeat, with high HRV associated with better stress resilience and better emotional regulation. Exercise increases HRV, which can improve how we handle stress.
Psychological benefits help us see ourselves in a more positive light. Studies find that exercise interventions raise feelings of confidence, self-worth and self-esteem. After all, we are facing a challenge and overcoming it with every workout. And continued exercise helps to keeps these good feelings going, because when study participants stop exercising, the psychological gains are reversed. In line with this idea, other studies have forced regular exercisers to be sedentary for one week, resulting in 44% of them developing a worse psychological disposition. And other studies show that with repeated workouts, positive self-regard improves.
Many have sleep difficulties such as trouble falling asleep, especially if anxious thoughts keep them up at night. The amount of physical activity you achieve each day is closely related to how you sleep. Regular exercise improves sleep quality, especially workouts that reach at least moderate intensity.
Exercise drives sleep benefits that may grow even more important with each passing year, because sleep issues can worsen as we age. This can be frustrating and impact daytime mood, energy, and hunger levels. Regular workouts reinstate better sleep patterns. For instance, one study in older individuals with chronic insomnia began working out for 30 minutes, three times a week. The result? A significant reduction of insomnia and a higher quality of life that lasted as long as the individuals kept exercising regularly.
Knowing the benefits of working out is a good start, but we must put this knowledge into action! For many, stress causes exercise avoidance. By choosing movement every day, even in small amounts, we align our actions with our values for a healthy body and mind. In addition, a workout is a chance to regain a sense of control often lost in moments of overwhelming stress.
Many experience stress that is worsened by putting other’s needs before their own, particularly if they have demanding work or family responsibilities. When we choose physical activity, we complete the self-care necessary to rise to the challenge of life’s unpredictable difficulties. And as an added bonus, choosing to exercise is a way to model for others a healthy way of coping with stress.
It’s not always easy to get started, but remember that even a little bit of exercise can make a big difference. Create your sense of accomplishment today to find your brighter mood. Even short movement snacks of a few minutes at a time can help. Lace up those shoes, get your blood flowing, and earn that sense of accomplishment – – Your body will thank you!
As Treo’s Global Wellness Researcher, Karlie uses recent research findings to support healthier daily habits. Karlie earned her doctorate in Neuroscience and Behavior and bachelors in Health and Exercise Science.
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