THE IMPORTANCE OF FITNESS FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

we all know that exercise is beneficial . It all the time that you should exercise because it's good for you but what does this mean exactly what a lot of people might not be aware of is the effect that exercise can have on a person's mental health.

                           

Firstly exercise is proven to greatly reduce day-to-day stress increase self-reported happiness levels and lower levels of sadness and loneliness both in the short term and long term exercise can prevent depression and anxiety disorders and in some cases can even be as effective as psychological and pharmaceutical treatments. A study also found that running for just 15 minutes a day or walking for one hour can reduce the risk of major depression by 26 so why does exercise have such a positive effect on the body well exercise boosts your body's production of endorphins which are hormones that help you relax feel more pleasure feel less pain and reduce the amount of a stress hormone in your body called cortisol exercise. Also helps your brain produce more dopamine and serotonin which are chemicals responsible for making you feel happy also activities like fitness classes and team sports are opportunities for social interaction which has proven to boost moods and decrease feelings of loneliness.

When it becomes a habit exercise can also improve self-esteem and foster a sense of self-wort than observational study looking at 1.2million adults across the u.s found that on average there is a 43.2 reduction in the number of poor mental health days experienced by those who exercise regularly compared to people who don't exercise exercising for 30 to 60 minutes a day was associated with the biggest reduction in poor mental health days.

 But exercising for more than three hours a day was associated with worse mental health than not exercising at all therefore it's obvious that obsessively exercising is not healthy. It was also found that team sports and aerobics were associated with the biggest reductions in poor mental health days unfortunately more than a quarter of adults across the world do not get enough exercise therefore you should identify what exercises you enjoy doing and then set reasonable goals and stick to an exercise routine to see positive results .

Here are some general suggestions individuals in their 20s can commit to a wide variety of exercises but should focus on developing bone mineral density so hey should do weight bearing excises that promote bone growth these include exercises such as running racing or martial arts individuals in their 30s and 40s start to lose muscles therefore weight training is especially important during this time it is also important to do cardiovascular exercises like rowing and swimming individuals over 50 should focus on exercises that help with balance.

 They should consider water aerobics stretching and performing lightweight activities however it's important to check with your doctor before starting any new exercise routines to make sure that they're safe for you the stay well program at the saint joseph's healthcare center in hamilton provides therapeutic exercises for those who have medical conditions such as neurological disorders or heart disease to gain perspective of this program and the benefits of exercise here is a short interview with an exercise physiologist hi my name is zachary martin i'm an exercise physiologist and stay well assistant here at st joseph's hospital what impacts do programs such as the stay well program have on both the physical and mental health of their patients the stable program is a physical maintenance and exercise program.

So we work on things like upper body strength lower body strength core strengthening as well as our aerobic capabilities and endurance things like range of motion flexibility agility as well as things as balance and coordination so overall there's a lot of different physical capabilities having to do with the program and as we know those really correlate a lot with our mental health do you think there's an indirect benefit that happens when patients come in so we are a group exercise program so that alone does have an indirect effect in that there's a lot of compassion a lot of friendships that are built here with the program a lot of socializing that happens within the program which is beneficial for one's mental and emotional health.

 We might see as well as people just being able to keep their independence and not having to rely on other resources or other family members or other friends to take care of them so i think that alone is going to have a big indirect effect on them and on our community do you think exercise should be used as a way to improve mental health again as we might have already talked about of course it is i mean a lot of studies show that there's a direct correlation between one's physical health and their mental health i mean i'm yet to meet somebody that felt bad after doing an exercise program everyone always tends to feel quite good about themselves after they did it knowing that they did Something to help their their health within a positive way at the end of the day is going to have that correlation towards their mental health what is one exercise everyone should do for a quick and easy workout quick easy workout everybody can do or at least the people within our program should be doing the older population or the frail population just that simple Sit to stand overall it is evident that exercise is beneficial for your mental health therefore you should remember to get up and stay active also be sure to check the description box for some mental health resources.