Since Pandemic outburst with work from home & long /stretched working hours becoming the new normal, professionals & corporate employees have not been able to give much time to their health & body. The nutrition & meal timings have become abrupt & uneven & exercise have become a thing of past. Work & office stress has taken a centrestage which has negatively impacted their physical & mental health.
Let us discuss how exercise can have a profound impact on mental health & wellbeing. A sedentary lifestyle like the one which professionals are experiencing today can have detrimental effects such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis & shorter life expectancy.
Regular exercise can do wonders on your mental & physical health & can open up doors for improving your health status.
Sedentary lifestyle coupled with work from home has led to an increase in the rate of anxiety & depression. Other contributing factors to mental health include- poor nutrition, long working hours, huge financial luggage & emotional pressure to build a distinctive image of themselves. Poor lifestyle choices such as low level of physical activity/inactivity create a never ending change of negativity.
A lot of us think walking /jogging in the countryside or hitting the gym can improve mood in the short term. So how does exercise help improve our mental health?
Exercise is known to stimulate the body to produce endorphins & enkephalins- the body’s natural feel good hormones that help us manage our problems, stress & emotions effectively. A simple act of indulging in workout can give you a break from the concerns you may be experiencing. Depending upon activity & intensity of the problem, you may benefit from a normal meditation approach to intensive workout to improve your mood & health.
A recent research suggests that exercise not only helps in improving your general health but also treating chronic illness. Any steady physical activity over 15 minutes can reduce the risk of depression by 26%. Exercises reduce the incidence of depression & improve our mental health as we grow older. This is also applicable in the case of anxiety. How does it happen? Exercise directly impacts our brain
Regular exercise promotes improved blood supply that improves supply of oxygen & nutrients thereby leading to better neuronal health. An important aspect of mental health is the area of the brain involved in memory, emotional regulation & learning known as the hippocampus. Mental health conditions are associated with reduced neurogenesis in the hippocampus. This holds true specifically in the case of depression. Mental ill health is related to cognitive inflexibility that makes us repeat our negative behaviours, reduced ability to process or acknowledge new information & use what we already know to make desired changes. Exercises, as such, through its effect on bodily systems increases capacity for mental flexibility.
Detailed study & research have shown that 3 training/exercise sessions per week is said to control depression. Better results can be achieved through consistency. Feel good benefits of weight loss, improved skin, improved metabolism & high energy level further contribute to a more positive outlook towards life.
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