Exercise Therapy

Feeling down? Tired? Is anxiety getting the best of you?

Ugh, I'm stressed out!

It happens to the best of us. The question is:

How do you deal with it?

It’s easy to adapt bad habits when it comes to dealing with stress or emotional events — like eating our emotions, napping the days away or taking out our fowl moods on those around us. I’m as guilty as the next person and as satisfying as that can seem in the moment, it’s simply a quick fix.

Luckily, there are many alternatives to dealing with these everyday issues, some of which may actually lessen the occurrence of anxiety, help you deal with stress in a more positive and productive way, and produce the awesome side effect of physically looking and feeling better. I feel fortunate to say that I found my perfect therapy tool at a very young age: gymnastics.

Everyone has their go-to stress-reliever, and for some it can be something as simple as sitting quietly, writing or meditating. For me it has always been physical activity. Perhaps it’s knowing that studies show how physical exercise, especially in middle-aged women, can help decrease symptoms of depression (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16242588). Maybe it’s imagining that each drop of sweat carries away with it each bit of worry that was sitting in our heads.  Even a single session of aerobic and resistance exercise can enhance your mood through the release of endorphins, leaving you with overall feelings of well-being.

Looking back, some of my most productive lifting days followed a stressful event, an emotionally draining day or simply one of those days where I wished I hadn’t gotten out of bed. Actually, those are usually the days that I look forward to and even crave my gym time. 

So why do I feel so good after those sessions of exercise?

I never considered it before I started, I just knew that I always felt better after lifting then I did before. Well, it turns out that exercise may not only increase body temperature and blood circulation to the brain, it also impacts the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. This process helps control our reactions to stress and it helps regulate several bodily processes including digestion, our immune system, our mood and emotions, sexuality and how we store and use energy (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15518309).

Now that I think about it, I’ve never looked back on an exercise session, of any kind, and wished that I hadn’t done it. I feel strong, physically and emotionally – like I could take on anything.

Over the years I have adapted several go to stress relieving activities for my various moods. One of these might be right up your alley.

Now, I know that there are times when the thought of picking up a weight or navigating your way through a busy gym can seem daunting and less than ideal. How could that possibly help your mood?

Such thoughts have raced through my mind too, especially when my to-do list seems to only get longer and I can’t imagine using the little bit of energy I have left to move my tired body.

My only advice, for myself included, is to start off small. Choose an activity that seems manageable, like a long walk. It’s amazing what a little fresh air can do. Make a conscious effort to move, beyond your normal everyday tasks and take it one day at a time. Maybe even make a playlist of songs that make you feel good or that have a tempo that fits your activity. Music can help distract you from your daily thoughts while you attempt to connect with your body, giving your mind a rest.

What happens if you can’t move?

Whether you’re injured or that darn cold finally got the best of you, there’s nothing worse than wanting to move and not being able to.

I’ve been there, and needless to say, I didn’t feel like myself. I was more than eager to recover to the point where I could move, even just a little.

Stretching and foam rolling then become very useful tools. I’ve found that going without doing anything at all invariably makes me feel down and anxious, but simply working in even these light activities can prevent the funk from setting in.

There are even studies to show that when physical exercise was taken away from people who are normally active, the risk of depressive symptoms and fatigue can increase significantly (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8171221)(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16554387)(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10610081).  I’ve experienced that first hand. A brutal knee injury forced me into a leg brace and out of the comfort of the gym – away from my team, the balance beam and uneven bars. It took all my might not to lose myself as I recovered. When I was able to move slowly and carefully, I found comfort again in the movement of my body.

I think everyone can use a little exercise therapy in their lives. As a personal trainer I see a variety of clients from all professions. Most of them come into their sessions with some level of stress related to work or just life. Part of what I incorporate into their sessions is a way of releasing their stress, or at least clearing their minds of stressful thoughts. My goal is to provide them just an hour of exercise therapy.  When I succeed, they always leave our sessions feeling better then when they came in.

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