Emotional Benefits of Physical Exercise

With mental strength coaching, in relation to sports, there are two general objectives.

1 – To better understand the effects of the mental factors on a teams and athlete’s performance. Most of the Thursday posts address this objective. For example, I’ve talked about some of the influences on an athlete’s mental strength, such as confidence, self-talk, pre-competition anxiety and goals on performance. In each post we looked at how to develop and use these mental strength skills to reach peak athletic performance.

2 – The second objective, I haven’t discussed much.  This is how the emotional factors are affected by participating in sports and exercise.  Some of these questions are:

• Does participation in youth sport influence psychological development?

• Does participation in sports increase aggressive behavior?

• What is the influence, or lack of influence, of exercise on psychological well-being?

Today we’re going to take a closer look at the last question.

Two Common Scenarios

Dan is a young professional trying to make a name for himself. He works 12 hour days in a very stressful environment but knows it will all pay off down the road. Exercise is not a part of his life. As an undergraduate, he played basketball with his friends but never on a regular basis. Now, there just is not time for it.

And, he believes he really doesn’t need to workout. He is young, healthy, average weight, and blessed with good genes. His family and friends tell him he should exercise but he just can’t justify sacrificing work time to exercise. Dan IS making a sacrifice and unfortunately this is the same sacrifice that many professionals make and it’s based on making a decision without all the information.

Jenny has three final exams in the next two days plus a term paper that is only partially complete. She has never felt such anxiety about her school work. She needs to keep her grades up to be considered for the graduate assistantship. The night before two of her exams, she puts down her books, laces up her running shoes, and goes for a 30 minute jog around campus. For years she has been a habitual exerciser, now is not the time to change her ways. Is she acting irresponsibly or actually helping herself?

In these two scenarios, we see Dan deciding that he doesn’t need the physical activity and unknowingly the benefits associated with exercise. So, based on this, he makes the decision to not make exercise a part of his life.

Jenny however has made exercise a priority as she recognizes the multitude of benefits that it brings.

Emotional Benefits

Exercise has benefits beyond the physical. When thinking of the benefits of exercise, we often think only of the physical benefits such as increased muscle mass, decreased fat, decreased resting heart-rate and/ or decrease blood pressure. In most cases, these benefits are enough to get people started on an exercise program and to keep them involved in regular exercise.

But, for some individuals, such as Dan, these benefits do not have an impact on behavior; the benefits don’t compel him to exercise. However, it is just as important to recognize that in addition to the numerous physical and physiological benefits of exercise, there are many emotional benefits that can be realized from engaging in regular exercise.

Think about yourself after you exercise:

• What did you experienced?

• How do you feel after exercising?

• Have you experienced any emotional benefits from exercising on a regular basis?

An awareness of these benefits may help Dan start exercising or may get you to the gym on those days were you just don’t “feel like it.”

Exercise can reduce anxiety. Both Dan and Jenny are experiencing elevated anxiety. What impact can exercise have on anxiety? Exercise can play a role in decreasing anxiety, both short term and long term. More specifically, anxiety levels are decreased for up to 24 hours after an exercise session (something Jenny realized and used purposefully to help her manage test anxiety).

Also, regular exercise at moderate levels has been found to decrease anxiety long-term

(1). So even though Dan may not see the physical need to exercise it may help him mentally and emotionally to be able to cope with his stress and anxiety.

Exercise has been found to relate to more positive mood states. Exercisers, as compared to non-exercisers, have more positive moods and exercising is tied to changes (for the better) in mood (1). And, contrary to what you might think, exercise does not have to be defined as working out for hours at a time every day or being a specimen of physical fitness.

Even low intensity activities can have a marked impact on mood. Exercise has been linked to a reduction in depression. Did you know that exercise is sometimes used in therapy to help individuals with clinical depression? The benefits of exercise are not limited to those with clinical depression as aerobic and anaerobic exercises are tied to a reduction in depression —period. This effect is both immediate and long-term in that the longer someone has been exercising regularly; the less likely he or she is to exhibit symptoms or feelings of depression.

So, exercise really is not just about the physical. While the physical benefits of exercise or sport participation are important and a source of motivation for many individuals, these benefits cross over to the emotional as well.

And, for some individuals, this knowledge can serve as a source of motivation as they look to reap these benefits. Exercise can play a role in one’s mental and emotional well-being by the reduction of anxiety, mood enhancement, and a reduction of depression.

Reference

1. Weinberg R, Gould D. (2003). Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

2. NSCA’s Performance Training Journal

Tell me how exercise has benefited you in the comments below: