Exercises to improve mental health
Good mental health is significant for individuals for emotional development, learning social skills, and developing resilience to deal with the problems. Hence, physical activity is not just good for your body but is also advantageous for your mental health. The ongoing pandemic has made us aware of the power exercise to keep our mental health in good condition. More and more people are turning to exercise to relieve their stress.
What are the mental health benefits of exercise?
Exercise is one of the best ways to reduce the feelings of loneliness. It releases chemicals like endorphins and serotonin that changes your mood. Doing regular exercise also reduces stress and improves mental health conditions. A few of the benefits of mental health benefits of exercise include:
- Reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety.
- Increased ability to cope up with stress.
- Enhances energy level and focus.
- Improved relationships and self-esteem.
How much exercise should you do?
It is recommended to do at least 25-30 minutes of moderate physical exercise. You can think of the different ways to include exercise in your daily routine and lifestyle. Choose something you enjoy doing and keep yourself motivated to stay on track. Combine exercise with a balanced diet to improve your energy level for exercise.
What are the different physical activities you can do to boost your mental health?
For most individuals, the level of anxiety has gone up during the pandemic. Hence, doing physical activity is the best way to boost our immune system and reduce weight and anxiety levels. Here are some of the physical activities; you can do to increase your mental well- being. These include:
- Walking
It is the simplest and most affordable form of exercise. A short walk in beautiful surroundings can provide immense benefits. A low impact exercise is an excellent way to start and encourage positive thoughts. Low-intensity aerobic activity is the best choice if you’re suffering from panic attacks and health issues.
- Yoga
Yoga is another thing if you prefer gentle movements. It is the best way to eliminate the destructive thoughts that you may find it difficult to get out of. Yoga will improve your problem-solving capabilities and will change your perspective towards different things. You can take the help of online yoga classes to learn the different yoga poses.
- Swimming
Just ten minutes of swimming on a daily basis can boost your mental health. If you don’t like going in the water, just imagine the feeling you are going to get after you’re done with the swimming sessions.
- HIIT workouts
High-intensity exercises can increase stress levels, but your body will tend to adopt these changes as you continue performing these exercises. With time your body will learn to cope up and support the stress coping strategies.
- Cycling
There is nothing that could meet the benefits of cycling to improve mental health. Doing cycling for half an hour daily can provide you a lot of benefits.
No doubt, exercise is an effective way of promoting positive mental health well-being. But it should also be noted that excess of everything can be damaging. Therefore, you should moderately do physical exercise. Initially, you can begin by doing physical exercise for ten minutes a day. You can gradually increase the time to fit your daily routine. So, if you’re also dealing with mental health issues, doing exercise can help you to keep your mind relaxed.
