To keep us physically sound, we all know how necessary exercise is. However, did you know that exercise can also help you remain mentally fit? Evidence suggests that there is improved mental wellbeing and physical well-being and lower rates of mental illness for people who exercise regularly. Everybody wants to be fit and healthy physically and mentally. However we also need some motivation and we look for personalities that can inspire us. It’s not a surprise that many desire the fitness and gymnastic ability of Tom Holland. Well, click here to know what you need to do to look like Tom Holland with a superhero body.

Idleness can endanger mental and physical health. Studies reveal that taking up exercise reduces the risk of developing mental illness. It also appears to improve in treating certain mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety. Evidence shows that physical exercise may be as successful as medications or psychiatric therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy. 

We take a look at 7 ways in which regular workout can help you improve your mental health.

 

• Boosts your Self-Belief

 

Jump on the treadmill to look and more importantly feel like a million bucks. Physical fitness can improve self-esteem and promote a positive self-image at a very basic level. Exercise, regardless of weight, height, gender, or age, can easily boost a person’s sense of attractiveness, or self-worth. How’s that for a dose of self-love!

 

• Induces Better Sleep

 

Exercise will help with that, too, if you have trouble having a good night’s sleep. Physical exercise boosts body temperature, which can help to relax the mind, resulting in more sleep. Exercise also helps to monitor the circadian rhythm, the built-in alarm clock of our bodies that determines when we feel tired and when we feel alert.

 

• Decreases the Level of Tension

 

Daily exercise is a perfect way to alleviate tension. You slacken the brain’s reaction to stress by increasing the concentration of a chemical in your body called norepinephrine by exercising your body and breaking into a sweat. Stress reduction will help you in coping with stressful life circumstances and resolving mental stresses.

 

• Stimulates Intelligence

 

Working out regularly boosts brain activity, which aids decision-making, discovering new ideas, and learning many things at once. It boosts your I.Q. and improves your mental ability to process information. Studies have shown that exercises help to create new hippocampal neurogenesis, which improves the ability of the brain to function.

 

• Help for Depression and Anxiety

 

Exercise is a clinically proven booster of mood, decreasing both depression and anxiety symptoms. Physical exercise increases endorphin levels, the body’s well-known “feel-good” chemical that induces feelings of pleasure and euphoria and is created by the brain and spinal cord. Even moderate workout during the week can improve depression and anxiety, so much so that before turning to medication, some doctors recommend trying out an exercise routine for these conditions.

 

• Increases the Levels of the Happy Chemical

 

An intense workout can be challenging, but the effort is well worth it. Endorphins are released when you exercise, triggering feelings of euphoria and pleasure. Workout has been shown in research to benefit people who are clinically depressed. This is why people who suffer from anxiety disorders or depression should make it a point to exercise regularly. Even if you don’t like going to the gym, exercising for 30 minutes a couple of times a week will improve your overall mood.

 

• Avoids the Deterioration of Cognitive

 

It’s unpleasant, but it’s real that our minds get a little hazy as we get older. Ageing and degenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s destroy brain cells, resulting in the loss of many essential brain functions. Although Alzheimer’s does not “cure”, exercises and a balanced diet, can help shore up the brain against cognitive loss. Working out increases the chemicals in the brain that help and prevent degeneration of the hippocampus, an essential part of the brain for memory and learning, particularly between the ages of 25 and 45.

Working out not only for your physical health but also for your mental health has many advantages. Exercise activates chemicals in your brain that boost your mood as well as the areas of your brain responsible for memory and learning. Exercise releases chemicals that boost the mood, including endorphins and serotonin. It can reduce any feelings of isolation and loneliness, and also help you to connect to a wider community of fitness enthusiasts.

Above all, be gentle with yourself if you haven’t exercised in a while. This can cause self-critical thoughts for many that contribute to fully giving up the exercise routine. Treat each day as a new beginning, and keep in mind that it’s normal to skip occasionally.