Its 6 am and your alarm gets you bounding out of bed. And it begins with kids, school, time, money, bosses and work. Even small things can send you into a spiral of frustration, and stress that seems to be there, day after day.
Stress isn't just an emotional or mental problem, it can have many physical effects on your body that are detrimental to you health and wellbeing. Some symptoms of stress include memory problems, inability to concentrate, weight gain, feeling overwhelmed, irritable, moody, chest pain and unhappiness. All these can lead to things like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, just to name a few.
Stress isn't just an emotional or mental problem, it can have many physical effects on your body that are detrimental to you health and wellbeing. Some symptoms of stress include memory problems, inability to concentrate, weight gain, feeling overwhelmed, irritable, moody, chest pain and unhappiness. All these can lead to things like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, just to name a few.
If this is you, what can you do to reduce or even eliminate stress in your life?
Research has shown one of the most effective ways to reduce stress is physical exercise.
When we exercise our excess stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol are reduced and we start to produce endorphins, the body's natural painkiller and mood elevators.
But does even just the thought of exercise give you a feeling of even more stress?
When some people think of exercise, expensive gyms, personal trainers or bulky equipment come to mind. That is one aspect of exercise, but doesn't necessarily have to be your exercise routine. Combining exercise with things you need to do or enjoy in your daily routine is a great way to get moving and slowly start to include exercise into your busy schedule. How?
Gardening. Yes! Research has shown weeding alone can burn up to 200 calories an hour. Add the other benefits of getting closer to nature and the feeling of accomplishment of growing your own healthy produce, can do wonders for your total well-being.
Dancing is another great way to exercise without feeling like its exercise. Dancing challenges the brain, helps get the heart rate up, improves balance, posture and agility, and moving to good music can do great things to elevate anyone's mood.
What about walking, no class needed. Walking can release tension in muscles, improves deep breathing and gets you out in nature. All positives to relieving stress. Don't drive to the shops, or train station, walk, you get where you need while exercising with the added bonus of helping the environment.
If you want to try out a class or two, what about considering Pilates or Yoga. These forms of exercise include stretching, strengthening core muscle groups, encourage blood flow, deep breathing, mental focus, all things vital for stress management.
If you are thinking its time to make the move into "real exercise" things like circuit training, bike riding, jump rope, swimming, aerobics gets your heart rate up helping your body accelerate the release of endorphins that naturally help you feel better physically and mentally.
If you have never had an exercise routine before, its good to remember to start gradually, even if it's just a few minutes a day, then adding minutes and intensity week by week will help to make you stick with your new routine and not give up so easily.
Our body is not designed to sit all day, just getting up and moving around whether at first its walking the dog, or taking the stairs instead of the lift will help reduce the negative effects of stress.
In order to get the most out of your workout, make sure you wear clothes that wil allow you to concentrate on your exercise, and not ill-fitting garments. Female For Life has a wide range of comfortable and stylish sports garments from maternity exercise clothes to Yoga wear that will not break the bank.
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