The number one quick-fix for good mental health.
Last week we discussed our third Building Block for Good Mental Health: Toolkit and Skills. We began with the most fundamental tool in our kit: sleep. The next one is exercise or movement. Again, this is another one that it is both a longer term fix, and short-term one, and as such, this also forms one of our COMMONSENSES approaches to instantaneously brightening our mood and making ourselves feel better in the moment when we need a boost.
As with most of the subjects we discuss, exercise is often overlooked in the treatment of mental health problems, which is why we say that we do mental health differently.
Exercise is classed as any activity that increases heart-rate and makes you breathe faster and feel warmer. It can include any type of cardio like running, HIIT workouts etc, and all strength training like lifting weights. It can also include activities like playing football, gardening, doing DIY, cycling, dancing and even a brisk walk. There are clearly different intensities of exercise and we do recommend combining more intense workouts, like running, with more moderate ones, like brisk walking, to obtain the most benefit.
Indeed, you may find a more intense workout more beneficial in times of anger or frustration, in which you can release some of your pent up energy. At other times, a more gentle approach, like walking, may be more beneficial, such as when you’re really low and it is hard to make yourself do anything. A word of warning: some exercise like walking or doing weights can provide a platform for rumination and therefore it might be that you need to provide yourself something to distract your thoughts, such as music, a podcast or watching TV whilst being active. Alternatively, where you’re able to direct your thoughts, it can give you an opportunity to reach outside of your head and mindfully enjoy your surroundings like the sun setting, butterflies or flowers emerging.
Good stress
Exercise is fundamental to human health and well-being, keeping our cardiovascular and musculoskeletal system in good working order, in the following ways:
cardiovascular system: exercise results in a rise in heart-rate, heavier breathing and increased blood flow throughout the body
musculoskeletal system: exercise puts constructive (or anabolic) pressure on the muscles, ligaments, tendons and bones.
Making use of these systems in a more exertive way, fortifies them and encourages repair, ensuring they are able to function better at rest. In this way, exercise is said to be a form of positive or good stress (hormesis).
Antioxidant
Exercise also helps the body to make glutathione, a powerful endogenous antioxidant with widespread benefits throughout the body including protecting DNA from damage. This:
reduces the risk of diabetes
improves inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis
protects blood vessels from hardening (atherosclerosis)
reduces blood pressure
protects the cardiovascular system
reduces risk of dementia
reduces the risk of cancer and
ameliorates the ageing process.
So why does exercise improve our mood?
Cheap thrills
When we exercise, our bodies release endorphins, which are internally produced opioids; think morphine! They have the following functions:
relieve pain
reduce stress
reduce depression and anxiety
improve mood
enhance cognitive function
improve memory
heighten sense of pleasure
provide a feeling of well-being
help us sleep
bolster self-esteem
reduce inflammation
support the immune system
Our bodies also release endorphins when we stretch our muscles, so even just doing a bit of yoga, or other forms of stretching, will make us feel better. If you’re really low and can’t find the motivation to do any exercise, maybe you could find the strength to do some light stretching. Just doing some reps with weights will be beneficial, or even a yin yoga session, which simply involves holding stretch poses for between 2-5 minutes each and is one of the least exertive forms of yoga.
We do need the right building blocks in our bodies in the first place to make these endorphins, which is one of the reasons that nutrition is the foundation Building Block in our model. Do get in touch if you’d like help with this.
Exercising also stimulates our bodies to produce other feel-good hormones and neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin and even endocannabinoids (internally produced chemicals that have a similar effect to cannabis).
Zzzz
Exercise also helps us sleep by expending energy (adenosine triphosphate, or ATP). Metabolising ATP creates adenosine as a by-product, which makes us feel drowsy and signals the body to sleep. We discussed last week the role of sleep in good mental health. For those that missed it, you can read this again here.
Other benefits
Exercise can provide a welcome distraction from whatever is causing us concern. We often use distraction techniques when comforting children, and yet we forget that sometimes as adults we also need distracting or having our minds taken off whatever is bothering us or causing anxiety. It can help us find a sense of perspective.
Exercise can also improve our sense of self-worth and self-efficacy, such as when we achieve something like scoring a goal, performing an effective tackle, or lifting heavier weights than we’ve previously been able to achieve, for example. It can also enhance our self-image as it improves our physique, and perhaps we become more toned or slimmer as a result.
Exercise may also involve social interaction and this releases oxytocin, as discussed in a previous blog, which you can read here. Doing this regularly can lead to building a sense of community and belonging, which are also fundamental human needs.
Quick fix
As we mentioned, exercise is both a longer term approach to better mental health and can also be a rapid, immediate fix. Many clients have said to me that they just don’t know how to improve their mood in the moment, and movement is my number one recommendation. Even just 5 squats or reps on a dumbbell will get you feeling better, and the likelihood is that once you’ve started, you’ll end up doing more!
How much
It is recommended that we obtain at least 30 minutes of exercise a day, and studies say that this can be broken down into 3 intervals of 10 minutes if this is more manageable.
We hope you find this helpful. Please do get in touch and let us know how you are finding these newsletters and whether you have had any success with implementing these strategies. If we have helped you, we’d be delighted to hear about it by giving us a review on Trustpilot here.
Until next time…
Well wishes,
Andie. x