Stress, Anxiety and Depression has a way of bogging us down as we tread through the trenches of life but thank goodness there’s a natural prescription to help manage it…
Inevitable Obstacles
Life is always throwing all sorts of things in our path as we attempt to navigate throughout a single day. Congested traffic, a deadline on a project, waiting on results from a major test, screaming children to tend to and the list goes on and on…The effects of stress and anxiety hits us in several ways. There are physical signs( like headaches, tense or sore muscles, trouble sleeping), emotional signs(feeling anxious or depressed).

Stress can trigger a chain of events if it goes unchecked for too long, it can progress to chronic stress which then be linked to depression! Your cortisol hormone levels will elevate, while serotonin and other neurotransmitters in the brain, including dopamine(feel good) will decrease. If we stay too stressed for too long it will take a toll mentally & physically.
The Neutralizer
We know we can’t completely eliminate stress but we sure can combat it and keep it under control with regular exercise! One of the main benefits of exercise is how it stimulates our neurotransmitters. It is one of the reasons why we feel better after exercising because it mediates our moods and emotions. Stress relieving benefits:
- Exercise helps you feel less anxious
- Exercise relaxes you
- Exercise make you feel better about yourself
- Exercise can help you eat better
You feel less anxious because exercise takes away nervous energy and calms tension throughout the body. One workout session can provide you between one and a half to two hours of relaxation response. I like to call this the post-exercise high because endorphins response gives us a similar feel to morphine. There are multiple neurotransmitters activated that improves our mood and leave us relaxed.

You remember those times you did something physically active? Haven’t you felt better about yourself? Self worth and that accomplished feeling plays a part in stress relief. Exercise can influence us to eat better because it can cause us to crave more nutritious foods, which we know that good nutrition helps our body manage stress better.
The Time Is Now
It is now time to overcome S.A.D.(stress–anxiety-depression) by us incorporating more physical activity in our daily routines to help prepare us mentally & physically to withstand the hectic demands we constantly face on a regular! We don’t have to start big by running a marathon, we can get going by just walking the block and with each stride we take, the load will feel a bit lighter 🙂