

Consider parking at the very back of the parking lot when out grocery shopping.If you’re transitioning back to working outside of your home, consider taking your bicycle, walking, or getting off a few stops before you usually would on public transit.There are always ways to add a fitness component to even the most mundane parts of your day. Incorporating physical activity into your life doesn’t have to be a chore or a task item off your to-do list. However, physical activity and physical exercise interventions have been shown to produce positive impacts in most of these disorders.³Īlthough COVID-19 has forced strict measures to restrict the virus from spreading, you can still fulfill physical activity safely in your neighbourhood, and from home. This can not only limit activity but also have long-term psychological effects.ĭepression, post-traumatic stress, acute stress disorder, exhaustion, detachment from others, anxiety, emotional exhaustion, and irritability are among other trauma-related mental health disorders that have affected people in quarantine. Isolation and province-wide restrictions have been a factor in limiting Canadian’s physical and social interactions. You don’t have to put your body into extreme modes of physical activity to feel a difference. Reaping the mental health benefits of exercise is easier than you think. Increased resiliency: Using physical activity as a stress-reliever can help build resilience and cope with challenges in a healthy way instead of resorting to damaging behaviours.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND MENTAL HEALTH PLUS
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Adding the mindfulness component is not only anti-anxiety inducing but therapeutic. Narrowing your mindset to a workout, whether it is 15 minutes or an hour, is enough to settle the mind of racing thoughts and give you a different perspective by the end of your workout. Lowered levels of anxiety: Purely focusing on body movement can break the anxiety cycle.By putting your body into an active mode, you will be able to actually feel the tension slowly fading away from your muscles, as well as the mind.

Lowered levels of stress: Along with the endorphins being pumped out from the brain, exercise can relieve symptoms of physical pain including tense and strained muscles.They are released into the body to relieve stress and pain. This good feeling is courtesy of natural chemicals called endorphins. Lowered levels of depression: Continuously being active can cause new activity patterns in the brain to promote feelings of well-being.
