Do you exercise on a regular basis? Do you feel much better after a workout session? Do you believe that exercise makes you happier?
According to Christina G. Hibbert, author of the book 8 Keys to Mental Health through Exercise, and a recent study, exercise is not just pivotal for the physical health, but for the mental too.
Believe it or not, only 10 minutes of light exercise can have a short-term influence on the hippocampus with the long-term effect happening after only 12 weeks.
How Does Exercise Help Us Feel Happier?
According to a study from the JAMA Psychiatry Journal, physical activity is a beneficial way to avert depression. Unfortunately, though we are aware of the advantages of exercise for a lower risk of poor mental health, a lot of people remain physically inactive.
Therefore, it is high time we changed this and start exercising more. If you still have doubts whether to make exercise a part of your daily life, continue reading our article. We will present 6 awesome reasons why it makes you happier!
6 Good Reasons Why Exercise Makes You Happy
- Reduces stress
When we exercise, the number of feel-good neurotransmitters in our brain increases. In return, we experience a euphoric feeling which is commonly known as the runner’s high. Moreover, these endorphins lower stress and relax you deeply. Plus exercise teaches us when to rest and relax and this is key in helping us manage stress. We will know better when the time for work is and when the time for relaxation is.
- Decreases anxiety
Did you know that exercise lowers tension and worry by minimising the tension in the muscles and by decreasing your blood pressure and heart rate? Therefore, it can help you lower anxiousness naturally by relaxing your mind and calming your down. Cardio workout is one workout that was found to encourage a sense of well-being in anxious individuals.
- Boosts your self-esteem
According to a 2006 study, exercise betters the creativity, assertiveness, and intuition and increases your enthusiasm for life. When you exercise, you begin to feel better about yourself and not just about your physical appearance. You learn to appreciate your body and mind together and thus, experience more self-esteem.
- Helps you cope with grief, fear, and loss
When we exercise, the endorphin and serotonin levels in the brain elevate. And, this can be highly effective in helping us cope with difficult feelings like grief and loss. For example, meditation is highly beneficial in normalizing the neurotransmitter levels and helps us feel normal and happier. Even though we may be overwhelmed by these hard emotions, we feel better about ourselves and can cope better. It will allow us to process these emotions and channel them differently. Plus, it makes a great distraction from the daily struggles of life.
- It strengthens your relationships
Couples who work out together spend more time together and thus, may have a stronger and better communication, particularly if they use the time for a walk or a jog to talk about their connection. Moreover, studies point out that workout elevates your physical advantages by facing the upcoming challenges together. Moreover, exercise also stimulates sexual intimacy and a healthy sexual life is associated with workout due to increases the sense of closeness among the partners.
- It averts cognitive decline
Cardio is known to boost the oxygen flow to the brain and lowers the loss of brain cells. Consequently, we experience a better cognitive activity, i.e. we are able to think clearer and better during the workout, but afterwards too. Regular physical activity betters the focus and our planning and thinking skills and thus, decreases the chance for cognitive decline.
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