Mental health… what exercises are best for you when you’re feeling down

Today, Longevity Exercise Physiology Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Bella Vista, Randwick, Pymble, Balmain, Neutral Bay, Coburg – Melbourne, and Barrie, Ontario – Canada explore what exercises are most beneficial to help boost your mood when you aren’t feeling your best. 

Most people are aware that exercise can help to improve our physical health. These benefits can include reducing blood pressure, reducing risk of chronic diseases, improving conditions such as osteoporosis, hypertension, diabetes, etc.

A lesser-known fact is that exercise can greatly improve our mental health!

Exercise can improve our mental health by:

• improving our mood,
• lessening symptoms of depression,
• lowering our stress and anxiety levels and,
• improving self-esteem.

Exercise has also shown to be as effective as cognitive behavioural therapy in improving our mental health!

There have been a lot of studies completed that compared different types of exercise and the effects it has on our mental health. These studies compared both aerobic and anaerobic exercise and included other forms of exercise such as yoga and tai chi. The evidence shows that both aerobic and anaerobic exercise significantly improves mental health. When these exercise modalities were compared against each other, they found that there was no significant difference between the two.

“Exercise has also shown to be as effective as cognitive behavioural therapy in improving our mental health!”

What this means is that if you are feeling down or not in the mood to do much, pick the exercise that you know you enjoy and look forward to the most. This can be playing a sport with friend, practicing some yoga, or lifting weights in the gym. This will make it easier to start the exercise and will make sure you receive all those great mental health benefits.

“Sometimes, if we are feeling down, the best approach is the one that is most achievable.”

Sometimes, if we are feeling down, the best approach is the one that is most achievable. Our main goal is to get moving! This can be walking the dog of practicing some tai-chi, pick what is the most achievable and enjoyable at the time. Often, the hardest part is starting, however, we will almost always feel better after we have completed some exercise. We also don’t have to work out for hours, as little as 15 minutes of exercise 3 times per week has been shown to significantly improve our mental health.

So, let’s get moving!

If you want an exercise program to help you get started with a program you enjoy to help you boost your mood & motivation, give Longevity Exercise Physiology Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Bella Vista, Randwick, Pymble, Balmain, Neutral Bay, Coburg – Melbourne, and Barrie, Ontario – Canada a call on 1300 964 002 today!

Written by Stefan Velevski