Whether it’s your general health or trying to improve aesthetics, the physical effects of exercise are often the primary motivator, thats great but exercise is an essential part of physical health, and is rightly lauded for it.
Many recent studies have found that exercise has positive benefits towards mental wellness too. They suggest tangible improvements in mood and decreased feelings of stress and anxiety. It can be concluded that exercise is more than just for physical health, it’s for health in general.
So what type of exercise are the best for mental health?
Resistance Training
Strength training can also boost our brain, helping with things like memory and preventing cognitive decline. Incorporating strength training into your routine can make you feel more mentally engaged and boost your mental energy and focus.
Running
Running regularly at a moderate or vigorous level can improve your mental health. Running also improves your memory and ability to learn. Running outside has other benefits, like lessening feelings of loneliness and isolation. Running can reduce stress, depression, and anxiety.
Boxing Training
Boxing offers a vast array of physical and mental advantages, according to several experts. Physically, boxing improves cardiovascular fitness, balance, endurance, strength, and hand-eye coordination. Psychologically, it fosters confidence, concentration, resilience, self-awareness, and stress relief.
Walking
Even a short burst of 10 minutes of brisk walking increases our mental alertness, energy and positive mood. Participation in regular physical activity can increase our self-esteem and can reduce stress and anxiety.
Swimming
It’s proven that swimming is a great way to escape our busy lives and has a positive impact on our mental health and wellbeing. Swimming can improve mood in both men and women. For people with fibromyalgia, swimming can decrease anxiety, and exercise therapy in warm water can decrease depression and improve mood.
Yoga
As a form of low-impact exercise, yoga has been shown to lower stress hormones in our bodies while simultaneously increasing beneficial brain chemicals like endorphins and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). These feel-good chemicals help decrease anxiety and improve mood.