How Exercise Helps Ease Anxiety
Being active likely has both physical and mental effects that improve mood, per a 2021 review in Frontiers in Psychiatry.¹ There’s evidence that exercise induces changes in a part of the brain that regulates the body’s stress response. While exercise initially spikes levels of stress hormones like cortisol and epinephrine, the levels of those hormones drop after physical activity, which may lead to feelings of decreased stress.²
For people with a diagnosed anxiety disorder exercise may complement first-line treatments, like anti-anxiety medicines and cognitive behavioral therapy.³
While further research is needed, exercise might even be a way to prevent or treat anxiety disorders, per researchers in the 2020 book Physical Exercise for Human Health.
How To Get Started With Exercise
It can be intimidating to start exercising if you havent done it in a while, but a plan can help you start and stick with it.
Your new exercise plan has a better chance of success if you:
- see your GP or an accredited exercise physiologist before you start, and regularly as you continue your exercise plan
- choose an activity you like, or have enjoyed in the past, that suits your fitness levels and abilities
- start small build up your activity gradually. Ideally, vary your activities so you dont get bored
- write your plan in your diary or on your calendar, so its part of your schedule
- regularly revisit your exercise plans, and try something different if its not working out for you.
What Effect Can Chronic Stress Have On Your Health
Stress sets off a chain of events. The body reacts to it by releasing a hormone, adrenaline, that temporarily causes your breathing and heart rate to speed up and your blood pressure to rise. When stress is constant , your body remains in high gear off and on for days or weeks at a time.
Chronic stress can take a physical toll on you. It can weaken your immune system and cause uncomfortable physical symptoms like headache and stomach problems. Stress affects the body in many ways.
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Make Exercise Work For You
Physical activity involves so much more than going to the gym or hopping on a treadmill. Finding what you like to do helps with adherence and better mental health outcomes.
To maximize success, try different times of the day. Download an app or take a class at the gym. Try exercising alone or with friends. Plug into music or go for a run and tune into nature. Although it may take some trial and error, keep experimenting until you find what works best for you.
Why Does Anxiety Lead To Depression
Most people dont even give a second thought to things and do what theyre doing, having fun, and enjoying themselves. People with anxiety disorders, including myself, know that these thoughts of nervousness and worrying are irrational, and most of the time, there isnt anything to worry about, but we continue to suffer.
As per Dr. Sally R. Connolly, LCSW who says, Its a cycle. When you get anxious and start to worry, you start to feel bad about it. In turn, depression starts to set in.
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Mental Health Benefits Of Exercise
Exercise releases chemicals like endorphins and serotonin that improve your mood. It can also get you out in the world, help to reduce any feelings of loneliness and isolation, and put you in touch with other people.
If you exercise regularly, it can reduce your stress and symptoms of mental health conditions like depression and anxiety, and help with recovery from mental health issues.
It can also improve your sleep, which is important in many different ways.
How To Be More Active Every Day
Make exercise part of your everyday activity. Try walking or cycling instead of using the car. Get off a tram, train or bus a stop earlier and walk the rest of the way. Or spend some time walking your kids to school. Get active around the house by doing some gardening, washing the car or cleaning the windows.
can give you more information. The important thing to remember is to try to move more and sit less every day.
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Learn To Avoid Procrastination
Another way to take control of your stress is to stay on top of your priorities and avoid procrastinating.
Procrastination may harm your productivity and leave you scrambling to catch up. This can cause stress, which negatively affects your health and sleep quality .
A study in 140 medical students in China linked procrastination to increased stress levels. The study also associated procrastination and delayed stress reactions with more negative parenting styles, including punishment and rejection .
If you find yourself procrastinating regularly, it may be helpful to get in the habit of making a to-do list organized by priority. Give yourself realistic deadlines and work your way down the list.
Work on the things that need to get done today and give yourself chunks of uninterrupted time. Switching between tasks or multitasking can be stressful in itself.
Summary
If you find yourself regularly procrastinating, staying on top of your to-do list may help ward off related stress.
Overcoming Obstacles To Exercise
Even when you know that exercise will help you feel better, taking that first step is still easier said than done. Obstacles to exercising are very realparticularly when youre also struggling with a mental health issue.
Here are some common barriers and how you can get past them.
Feeling exhausted. When youre tired, depressed, or stressed, it seems that working out will just make you feel worse. But the truth is that physical activity is a powerful energizer. Studies show that regular exercise can dramatically reduce fatigue and increase your energy levels. If you are really feeling tired, promise yourself a quick, 5-minute walk. Chances are, once you get moving youll have more energy and be able to walk for longer.
Feeling overwhelmed. When youre stressed or depressed, the thought of adding another obligation to your busy daily schedule can seem overwhelming. Working out just doesnt seem practical. If you have children, finding childcare while you exercise can also be a big hurdle. However, if you begin thinking of physical activity as a priority , youll soon find ways to fit small amounts of exercise into even the busiest schedule.
Feeling hopeless. Even if youve never exercised before, you can still find ways to comfortably get active. Start slow with easy, low-impact activities a few minutes each day, such as walking or dancing.
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Exercise Health And Stress
Few things are more stressful than illness. Many forms of exercise reduce stress directly, and by preventing bodily illness, exercise has extra benefits for the mind. Regular physical activity will lower your blood pressure, improve your cholesterol, and reduce your blood sugar. Exercise cuts the risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, colon and breast cancers, osteoporosis and fractures, obesity, depression, and even dementia . Exercise slows the aging process, increases energy, and prolongs life.
Except during illness, you should exercise nearly every day. That doesn’t necessarily mean hitting the gym or training for a marathon. But it does mean 30 to 40 minutes of moderate exercise such as walking or 15 to 20 minutes of vigorous exercise. More is even better, but the first steps provide the most benefit. Aim to walk at least two miles a day, or do the equivalent amount of another activity. You can do it all at once or in 10- to 15-minute chunks if that fits your schedule better. Add a little strength training and stretching two to three times a week, and you’ll have an excellent, balanced program for health and stress reduction. And if you need more help with stress, consider autoregulation exercises involving deep breathing or muscular relaxation. Remember, too, that mental exercises are the time-honored ways to cut stress .
Popular beliefs notwithstanding, exercise is relaxing.
How Exercise Reduces Stress
Aerobic exercise is key for your head, just as it is for your heart. You may not agree at first indeed, the first steps are the hardest, and in the beginning, exercise will be more work than fun. But as you get into shape, you’ll begin to tolerate exercise, then enjoy it, and finally depend on it.
Regular aerobic exercise will bring remarkable changes to your body, your metabolism, your heart, and your spirits. It has a unique capacity to exhilarate and relax, to provide stimulation and calm, to counter depression and dissipate stress. It’s a common experience among endurance athletes and has been verified in clinical trials that have successfully used exercise to treat anxiety disorders and clinical depression. If athletes and patients can derive psychological benefits from exercise, so can you.
How can exercise contend with problems as difficult as anxiety and depression? There are several explanations, some chemical, others behavioral.
The mental benefits of aerobic exercise have a neurochemical basis. Exercise reduces levels of the body’s stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, chemicals in the brain that are the body’s natural painkillers and mood elevators. Endorphins are responsible for the “runner’s high” and for the feelings of relaxation and optimism that accompany many hard workouts or, at least, the hot shower after your exercise is over.
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How Does Exercise Help Depression And Anxiety
For many, working out is a way to set and conquer personal goals. Whether youre interested in running a marathon or doing a pushup, setting attainable and measurable objectives is a way to maintain control and keep your interest in physical activity.
Anxiety and depression symptoms can rob you of the power and/or control you have over your environment or your life. By setting and reaching physical goals for yourself, you gain a sense of pride, accomplishment, and control.
Rewarding yourself for surpassing these goals can provide great incentive to continue to work towards your ideal physical fitness level and set new, harder-to-achieve goals. Goals should be personal you can decide exactly what you are working for and why, and how to reward yourself accordingly.
Exercise As Stress Relief
When youve been diagnosed with heart disease, you need to manage a number of new stressors on an ongoing basis. Dealing with more frequent doctor visits, getting used to new medical treatments, and adjusting to lifestyle changes are just some of the factors that may cause you to experience stress and anxiety.
Fortunately, you can take some simple steps to help relieve stress. Many of those steps can help improve your overall health as well, including the health of your heart. Exercise is one of the best strategies for combating stress and managing heart disease.
Physical activity can help lower your overall stress levels and improve your quality of life, both mentally and physically. Exercising regularly can have a positive effect on your mood by relieving the tension, anxiety, anger, and mild depression that often go hand-in-hand with stress. It can improve the quality of your sleep, which can be negatively impacted by stress, depression, and anxiety. It can also help boost your confidence levels.
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Increases Emotional Resilience To Stress
One explanation says that exercise may increase emotional resilience to stress.
In a 2014 study , researchers looked at 111 participants and compared the effects of a stressful task with those of a non-stressful task. They also analyzed differences between people who exercised regularly and people who were sedentary.
The results indicated that stress caused a smaller decline in positive mood among regular exercisers. The sedentary individuals experienced a larger decline in mood. This suggests that regular exercise may increase resilience, helping people cope with difficult situations.
However, it is important to note that the study did not show a direct causal link between stress levels and exercise. Other factors are likely at play for example, a person with a chronic health condition that forces them to be sedentary may have higher stress levels overall.
Despite this, lower stress levels may mean a person is less likely to experience certain health problems. Older research from 2013 notes that 7590% of visits to a primary care doctor are for stress-related conditions, such as:
Tips And Strategies To Manage Anxiety And Stress
At some point, anxiety and stress affect everyone. They can manifest differently in different people, and the level of anxiety one experiences can vary, but there is one thing for certain: there are ways to manage anxiety, even if it feels out of control.
Of course, if anxiety is affecting your everyday life and getting in the way of your daily productivity for an extended period, please seek assistance. Find Help
Information about causes and treatment goes a long way in helping to understand anxiety and stress, but there are also some physical and mental things you can do when feeling anxious or stressed. Some coping strategies from ADAAs experts include:
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Easy Ways To Move More That Dont Involve The Gym
Dont have a 30-minute block of time to dedicate to yoga or a bike ride? Dont worry. Think about physical activity as a lifestyle rather than just a single task to check off your to-do list. Look at your daily routine and consider ways to sneak in activity here, there, and everywhere.
< Move in and around your home. Clean the house, wash the car, tend to the yard and garden, mow the lawn with a push mower, sweep the sidewalk or patio with a broom.
Sneak activity in at work or on the go. Bike or walk to an appointment rather than drive, use stairs instead of elevators, briskly walk to the bus stop then get off one stop early, park at the back of the lot and walk into the store or office, or take a vigorous walk during your coffee break.
Get active with the family. Jog around the soccer field during your kids practice, make a neighborhood bike ride part of your weekend routine, play tag with your children in the yard, go canoeing at a lake, walk the dog in a new place.
Get creative with exercise ideas. Pick fruit at an orchard, boogie to music, go to the beach or take a hike, gently stretch while watching television, organize an office bowling team, take a class in martial arts, dance, or yoga.
What Is Physical Activity
Being physically active means sitting down less and moving our bodies more. Many people find that physical activity helps them maintain positive mental health, either on its own, or in combination with other treatments.
This doesn’t have to mean running marathons or training every day at the gym. There are lots of different things you can do to be a bit more active. For ideas, see our information on choosing an activity. We also have some tips to help you get started, and information about how much activity is healthy.
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Exercise As An Intervention For Anxiety And Depression During The Covid
The effect of exercise in treating or preventing anxiety and depression has been demonstrated in numerous studies , and widely accepted as an affordable, non-invasive, and easily accessible measures for individual with mental disorders . Recently, a study reported that, as people were rarely able to get access to exercise facilities during the Covid-19 pandemic, exergames based on the combination of exercise with appealing digital games was a potential method to cope with anxiety . A 20 min single session exergame at moderate intensity were able to significantly reduce the levels of anxiety in healthy person and 8 week exergames performed 2 days per week was demonstrated to alleviate the anxiety levels in patients . For Covid-19 patients, relaxation techniques and breathing exercises were recommend as one of the interventions to improve acute anxiety, although more evidence is needed . Furthermore, a study on college students demonstrated daily physical activity confers beneficial effects in reducing Covid-19-induced stress and anxiety .
Spend Time With Your Pet
Having a pet may help reduce stress and improve your mood.
When you cuddle or touch your pet, your body releases oxytocin a hormone thats linked to positive mood .
Plus, studies show that pet owners especially those who have dogs tend to have greater life satisfaction, better self-esteem, reduced levels of loneliness and anxiety, and more positive moods .
Having a pet may also help relieve stress by giving you purpose, keeping you active, and providing companionship.
Summary
Although stress is an unavoidable part of life, being chronically stressed takes a toll on your physical and mental health.
Fortunately, several evidence-based strategies can help you reduce stress and improve your overall psychological well-being.
Exercise, mindfulness, spending time with a pet, minimizing screen time, and getting outside more often are all effective methods.
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Exercise Fuels The Brain’s Stress Buffers
Exposure to long-term stress can be toxic to in the body, even leading to medical concerns like high blood pressure and a weakened immune system, along with mental illnesses like anxiety and depression.
It may seem counterintuitive that exercise, a form of physical stress, can help the body manage general stress levels. But the right kind of stress can actually make the body more resilient. Research shows that while exercise initially spikes the stress response in the body, people experience lower levels of stress hormones like cortisol and epinephrine after bouts of physical activity.
So far, there’s little evidence for the popular theory that exercise causes a rush of endorphins. Rather, one line of research points to the less familiar neuromodulator norepinephrine, which may help the brain deal with stress more efficiently. Research in animals since the late 1980s has found that exercise increases brain concentrations of norepinephrine in brain regions involved in the body’s stress response.
Norepinephrine is particularly interesting to researchers because 50% of the brain’s supply is produced in the locus coeruleus, a brain area that connects most of the brain regions involved in emotional and stress responses. The chemical is thought to play a major role in modulating the action of other, more prevalent neurotransmitters that play a direct role in the stress response.