How Daily Exercise Can Better Your Mental Health

Everyone understands regular exercise is a necessary part of their physical health. Most doctors will recommend getting at least thirty minutes of moderately intense exercise five times a week to maintain good physical health. However, this is not the only aspect of your health exercise can influence. Regular exercise also has a significant positive influence on many mental illnesses and can even boost the mental health of anyone without a mental illness. Curious about how this happens? Start reading for the full details!

Loosen Tense Muscles

Most patients with anxiety, or even for individuals undergoing a stressful period, experience tense muscles. They can feel quite ‘wired’ and on guard when these moods strike. However, quality exercise helps loosen muscles and relieve this pent-up tension. The right exercise session can even lessen the tension enough to get rid of the anxiety entirely for a little while. Although most exercises are good at doing this, perhaps the best is yoga, since the goal is to stretch your muscles and improve your flexibility and strength. Regardless of your chosen exercise, however, one of the best things you can do, not only for safety but also to loosen tense muscles, is to have both a stretch warm up and cool down period as part of your routine.

Continue reading for another way exercise can positively influence your mental health.

Interrupt Flow Of Negative Thoughts

Most types of mental illness such as depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder have a form of unwanted thoughts, whether it is wondering if you left the oven on, worrying about something you said or what might happen, or negative thoughts about self-image. Exercise is a phenomenal way to interrupt the flow of these unwanted thoughts. It gives the individual a chance to focus on the exact body movements - such as how they are bending their arms and keeping their ab muscles tight when doing a push-up - instead of these intruding thoughts. Of course, the difficulty of doing this depends on the individual exercising, but with practice, there is a clear link between interrupting these thoughts and regular exercise. Make it part of your routine for the best results.

Get happy with the next exercise that benefits your mental health.