During the long traffic ques of late I’ve taken to scanning through several well-know international radio stations, from London to USA. What becomes immediately obvious is that there are ALWAYS issues that concern, invigorate and create debate in our society. Whether it’s the thousands of ‘Boat people’ trafficked and arriving without warning on the shores of England, the mass shootings in Germany, the unpopularity of the UK Police, the bombing of innocent people in Ukraine, the rising inflation in the US, the floods in New Zealand, Earthquakes in Turkey, and which politician said what to whom, not to mention the massive puzzle of global warming – and of course, yes ‘the traffic’. There is every reason to become anxious and even ‘depressed’.
The question is, what are you going to do about it? Certainly, every one of the issues above can be delt with by positive solutions and action. Although in most, there will be resistance and hardly anything listed can be solved ‘overnight’. And challenges that take time and uncertainty, build stress. Local family and personal relationship issues can often be resolved quickly, but larger problems involve more people, with differing view-points.
Fortunately, we now know that exercise reduces anxiety and depression. I’ve personally found the slow, concentrated action, and breathing during weight-training to be the ultimate drug-free antidepressant. Cardio and classes have a similar impact. The MAYO CLINIC says that exercise releases feel-good endorphins – natural cannabis-like brain chemicals along with other brain chemicals that enhance your sense of well-being. Exercise takes your mind off your worries helping you to get away from negative thought cycles. You gain confidence by meeting exercise goals and overcoming small challenges. You get more social interaction, enhancing your mood. And lastly the experience gives you the confidence that you don’t need to resort to drugs or alcohol, but instead you can utilise exercise as your coping mechanism.
It’s hard to imagine any better reason to ensure you do make your workout time today!
Club Physical has for many years endorsed exercise as the best solution to mental health, the ‘natural high’ – Here’s a short clip of when we worked with the performing arts group at Rutherford College. We wrote the rap, Tina chanted it and the kids danced it!
