6 exercise tips to heal your mind

Exercise on prescription? Yes, it’s happening! After having been hailed as the cleanest wonderdrug known to man (second perhaps only to sleep), exercise is now being recommended as a surefire means of improving wellbeing, as well as treatment for a range of medical conditions, including depression.

Even 25 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous exercise (150 minutes a week) can cut your risk of depression by 22 per cent, according to a new international study, while scientists in Australia also revealed that ditching your weekly exercise regime leaves you at a greater risk of depressive symptoms (especially if you’re a woman). This World Mental Health Day, take these steps to making your exercise sessions work for your mind as well as your body…

1 Get connected

One 2017 study suggested that working out in a group could reduce your stress by 26 per cent, while research from 2015 showed that friends who move together tended to get on better, too.

Suzy Reading,
 a psychologist, yoga teacher and author of The Self-Care Revolution, isn’t surprised. ‘Social connection is a basic human need, an evolutionary drive,’
she says. ‘It’s all about a sense of shared experience and shared purpose, so the “we’re in this together” mentality during exercise can be fantastic. Make sure it’s a supportive crowd of people, though, and ideally you need to be matched
in terms of levels and abilities.’

2 Get natural

‘Getting out in nature is like hitting the reboot button,’ says Reading. ‘It’s so important to take yourself away from screens so you can appreciate space and fresh air. This helps us to reconnect with what is most important in life.’

‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ might sound like just another trendy excuse to lie out in the garden all day, but trees and green spaces are now being recognised as evidence-based natural memory and mood boosters. Even a short time spent moving in the great outdoors can have genuine benefits on mood, especially for those struggling with mental wellbeing.

Read more: the health benefits of gardening 

3 Shape up

‘Most people know that movement has an anti-depressant effect, but there are also particular shapes we can make with our bodies that are uplifting,’ says Reading. ‘If you sit with a rounded posture for hours on the computer, it lowers energy levels and mood, whereas doing heart and chest-opening postures in yoga have the opposite effect.’

One study from New Zealand found that adopting
a more open posture (sitting upright with shoulders drawn back and down) could make those suffering with mild-to-moderate depression feel more positive and energised.

Read more: 6 stress-busting Pilates moves

4 Breathe into it

‘We know that when we breathe better, we feel better,’ says Reading. ‘This
is because when your breath is more expansive, it soothes your nervous system [which can ratchet up if you’re under pressure].’

It’s so powerful, in fact, that breathing exercises have even been used to help war veterans with PTSD symptoms. So next time you’re feeling depleted and stressed, ditch the headphones and exercise mindfully.

Read more: breathe out to chill out

5 Think first

Bringing up positive memories while exercising can help generate positive emotions, 
say researchers. But what about self- talk? ‘It’s possible to harness your
inner dialogue – the words that we choose as we speak to ourselves –
with visualisations in order to get
the best possible impact from your movement sessions,’ says Reading, who recommends using ‘priming statements’ to get yourself in the best state to exercise.

If there are things that get in the way of you exercising, like the rain, your primer statement would be, ‘If it’s raining, I will roll out my mat and do 20 minutes of yoga,’ or, ‘I’ll drive to the swimming pool and do 20 lengths instead.’ ‘Prepare these statements in advance,’ says Reading. ‘Write them down and keep them to hand.’

6 Make it a routine

Don’t exhaust yourself with too much choice before you exercise (that thing called ‘decision fatigue’ is genuine, you know), but rather make it a routine. A healthy dose of repetitive behaviour could reduce anxiety, say researchers.

When taken in moderate doses, a dollop of exercise reduces levels of stress hormones cortisol and noradrenaline. Continual high levels of such hormones place you at risk of stress-related illnesses like chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, so you’ll need to keep active to give your body a way of burning them off.

Read more: 8-step happy yoga routine

Summary

Article Name

6 exercise tips to heal your mind

Description

Exercise is now being recommended as a surefire means of improving our mental health and wellbeing. This World Mental Health Day, make your exercise sessions work for your mind as well as your body.

Author

Lucy Fry

Publisher Name

Healthy Magazine

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