We all know that feelings are fickle. Mood swings, depressive thoughts, anxiety and feeling “down” can quickly become a crushing, debilitating problem. But the good news is: feelings can change. By establishing daily exercise, as promoted by Wellness Treatment Center of Englewood, CO, you may begin to enjoy some relief from feelings of depression and anxiety.
Your journey towards a healthy lifestyle includes developing a food plan rich in nutrients and supplements to support good mental health. In addition, it is important to establish an exercise program that can help you start to feel better.
How Does Exercise Help My Depression?
Exercise has been shown to help alleviate symptoms of depression and make you feel better in a variety of ways. Not only can you enjoy increased energy and improved health and wellness from a regular exercise plan, you can also experience some of these benefits:
- Release of serotonin and dopamine (the “feel good” chemicals) into the brain
- Sleep better
- Distract you from recurring depressive thoughts
- Empower you with positive feelings of control and increased self-esteem
- Experience a social opportunity by exercising with others and interacting with them
8 Easy Exercise Options
- Hiking – take advantage our location to enjoy a walk in the park each day or hiking a trail in the mountains. It’s so beautiful you might not even realize you are exercising.
- Karate – any form of martial arts can be a great way to build muscle tone, breathing control, focus, stamina as well as the skill of self-defense.
- Running in place – take a break at work to run in place to spike your endorphins and revamp your energy.
- Jogging – build up your endurance from walking to slow jogging to steady jogging on a treadmill or outdoors.
- Yoga or Tai Chi – easy on the joints, these slow movements can help you discipline negative thoughts, center your breathing and develop your muscle tone.
- Weight training – good for bone health and easy to measure progress.
- Swimming – another good choice for those with joint pain, swimming or water aerobics keeps the weight off the joints and provides good muscle resistance.
- Gardening – it’s possible to have a hobby that you can turn into part of your exercise plan. Planting a tomato patch with flowers for the bees can be the start of a beautiful exercise regimen.
Start Out Right
Like anything else, starting a lifelong exercise program is going to be easier with support. While it is fun, having a lot of “likes” on your Facebook post about starting a new exercise plan is not going to be enough to keep you on track on the days when your feelings are fickle and you really don’t feel like exercising.
At Wellness Treatment Center, we encourage you to choose a daily form of exercise as another way to lessen feelings of depression and anxiety and as ways to address existing health conditions. As a part of your intensive outpatient program, we offer personal trainers, restorative yoga instructors and exercise pros that target stress management.
Exercise can make a positive impact on your life as you take charge of your feelings. Today is the day to start your own personal exercise plan that can help in establishing a healthier lifestyle.