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How Exercise Can Improve Your Mental Health

Why exercise is great not just for the body but for the brain too.

By McKenzie JonesPublished 4 years ago 3 min read
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How do you know if exercising improves mental health or not? While there's little debate that exercise is crucial for your overall physical health, what you might not be aware of is that exercise can also help you to reduce stress and improve your mental health as well. Some people have a clear understanding of the importance of exercise, but other people have a hard time believing that physical activity has such an important impact on the health of the mind. The human brain is responsible for about two-thirds of the activities in the body and mental activities play a major role in how well we perform. Exercise helps us to be mentally active and this can in turn help us live a longer and better life.

It is important to note that physical activity is necessary to keep our bodies healthy and fit. The body needs energy to function properly and in this way, it helps to prevent diseases, as well as stress, from affecting us. Exercising can be done by ourselves, with the assistance of an instructor or a professional who works out the muscles of our bodies. There are plenty of exercise and nutrition trips in health hack blogs but it is important to remember that there is no substitute for the regular exercise that we should do for our bodies.

When you think of exercise, you probably think of waking up at a crazy hour to put on expensive workout clothes to go to an expensive gym with fancy equipment or over the top new fitness trends. While some people enjoy these kinds of routines and others hate them, there are plenty of things you can do, and plenty of affordable women’s size-inclusive workout clothes you can wear to get a little exercise every day without completely changing your lifestyle.

Exercise Is Meditation

Many of us find it easy to focus on simple tasks when we're stressed or tired. This is why activities such as going to the gym, jogging, or even walking can often help soothe our minds. When you go to the gym, run, or participate in any other physical activity, you are repeating movements that strengthen your muscles. Participating in these types of exercises can often serve as a form of meditation, a time where your mind can focus on one task. This is one of the reasons why exercise is so good for your mental health.

Exercise Makes Our Bodies Feel Good

If you find you are feeling really tired or depressed after a day at work you might be tempted to lie down in your bed or maybe sit in front of the TV but you should resist this temptation as this could make you feel lethargic and lazy. On the other hand, doing some form of physical activity produces chemicals in our bodies that make us feel better. This is why doing a little bit of physical activity every day is good for our minds.

Another way to get into a better mental health state is to exercise regularly even if you don't have time to work out for long periods of time. This will allow your mind to get into a routine and will ensure you are ready for anything that comes your way. If you exercise regularly, you can get into the proper mood for meeting new people, making new friends, or just enjoying life.

Improves Concentration

Exercise is also very good for your mind by helping to improve concentration and alertness which can be especially beneficial for students who need to keep their mind active during long lectures. If you are going to college or university, you may find that studying is difficult but if you exercise regularly your mind will be more effective and easier to focus on.

Builds Confidence

Lastly, exercising and reaching fitness goals helps to build confidence. Like with many things in life, when you stick with something and begin to see improvement, you gain the assurance that you can accomplish things that might have once considered difficult. This gives you confidence that you can accomplish things you put your mind to, which is excellent for your mental health!

Dealing with issues such as anxiety or depression is not easy and you should definitely seek professional help if these feelings become difficult to manage but one thing mental health experts all across the board agree on is that exercising is great for your mental health!

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