Can Exercise Really Make You a Happier Person?
We have often heard our elders, doctors, and many others say that exercise is undoubtedly the cure for a lot of things. It can provide a permanent solution to fatigue and depression. It also provides fitness and makes us ready for the outside world. Apart from all this, exercise provides better, smoother, glowing skin as well as a good sleep every night.
Most importantly, we must remember the most obvious health benefits of physical exercise including a more slim and trim waistline, stronger muscles, and a lot more stamina than you used to have before. Nevertheless, what we can never forget is the positive effect that physical exercise has on the mood of a person.
Most of us are aware of the physical benefits when we exercise. But when it comes to our brain and mood the connection isn’t always so clear. We’ve all heard about the feel-good chemical called endorphins swimming around our brains. But how is it linked to exercise?
Here’s what happens… When you start exercising your heart rate increases and your brain identifies this as a moment of stress.
To protect you from that stress your body releases a protein called BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor). This BDNF has a protective and reparative element on your memory neurons.
At the same time endorphins, a group of stress-fighting hormones secreted within the brain and nervous system is released in your brain. These endorphins minimize the discomfort of exercise, block the feeling of pain and create a feeling of happiness or euphoria.
All this stuff going on inside our brain and nervous system is why we often feel so at ease, mentally relaxed, and happy after exercising. Therefore it’s not a surprise that exercise is one of the most effective ways to improve your mental health.
The best part is that you don’t have to make big lifestyle changes to reap these benefits. Research states that even minimal exercise every day can show results within a week or two. Your level of personal fitness is hardly affected by your age. Rather, once you start indulging in physical exercise, you will soon learn that it can be used as a tool, a powerful one that can not only improve your health at numerous levels but also be used as an extremely powerful tool that can lift up your overall mood.
Benefits of exercise that improve lifestyle
There are people who indulge in physical exercise quite regularly. They do so because they gain a sort of well-being through the workout sessions. Listed below are a few benefits of physical exercise that will make your lifestyle healthier in every way possible.
#1. Improvement in Memory
Endorphins create a sense of happiness in humans. It is the same endorphins that assist you in developing concentration and help you focus on things mentally even more than before. Physical exercise, alongside all the benefits mentioned before, stimulates the birth and the growth of brain cells. It also helps in the prevention of the decline of mental functions that gradually manifest themselves with aging.
#2. Greater Self-Esteem
Regular physical activity or exercise is a sort of investment that you make for the sake of your mind and body. When you start doing it often, you will soon find that it has become a habit. This habit will not only plan an important role in the improvement of your sense of self-worth but will also make you feel both strong as well as ready to take on any challenge yourself. You will soon start to feel better and have more positive feelings about your physical appearance. Moreover, once you start setting exercise goals and crush them, even if they are small, you will surely feel a sense of achievement. You will feel better about yourself.
#3. Better and more regular sleep schedule
Regular physical exercise, be it in the morning or even in the afternoon will help you to regulate your sleeping schedule and pattern. For those of you who prefer to exercise at night, you might want to try out exercises that do not cause much stress. Yoga or Pilates or even light or gentle stretching can help you sleep comfortably and make the sleep timing regular.
#4. Increased levels of energy
Physical exercise helps in increasing your heart rate. If you continue to do this for about three to four days every week, your metabolism rate and function will become more regular. This will also provide you with more energy to function all day. You will not need to exercise for hours on end. Only a few minutes of physical exercise for a few days every week will provide you with enough energy to exercise a little more each day.
#5. The increased amount of resilience
We all keep facing both mentals as well as emotional challenges in life from time to time. Physical exercise can help you cope with these challenges in a healthy manner. Energy drinks are useful but not healthy at all. Regular physical exercise boosts your immunity, creates a healthy nervous system, and reduces the very effect of stress.
It doesn’t really matter too much what form or category of physical activity you choose for yourself. You might want to go jogging or even choose a sport of some sort or join a gym. It is being active that works wonders and is better than remaining idle all day.
Exercise is good not only for your brain but also for your body, especially the nervous system. Moreover, it is a guaranteed way for increasing your happiness and energy and reducing stress at the same time.
If any of you would like to gain an understanding of your level of fitness and maybe even become a professional, look no further. You must thank Trifocus Fitness Academy. All of their courses are internationally accredited. They make your fitness education go a long way to prove useful in the days to come.
Now that you know how physical exercise can make you a happier person, what are you waiting for? Create your own activity schedule and walk towards a happier life now!