Here is something you may not know, and I really haven’t talked about it in the past with many people… but I battle with anxiety. Not that this is something I am ashamed of, after all 40 million Americans have to battle with the disease. The older I get the more comfortable I get with it… I was diagnosed at 15 and of course as a teenager I thought I was rare and crazy.
Here is the thing though… I have not been on anxiety medicine in over 5 years. And my doctor is fine with it. My lifestyle is my medicine! I keep my anxiety under control (well, most of the time) with regular exercise and a healthy diet. Sure there are times when I have mini flair ups, for example this past week was crazy…
My soon to be in-laws were meeting my family for the first time, I was juggling wedding plans, planning for their visit, preparing a 4 course meal for six and working 3 jobs.. so you can see why I was a bit on edge this week and yes I did have a panic attack or two but this is normally rare.
The Big Exercise And Anxiety Report
The reason I am talking about this, is because a new report was just published that I loved to read!
Out of 3,000 patients with anxiety those that exercised regularly saw a 20% or more reduction in their anxiety symptoms. Now, I am not suggesting that you stop your meds tomorrow and go lift weights by any means but this has helped for me… it also helps to have a great support system like Dan who can see when I am on edge and helps to calm me down.
‘”Our findings add to the growing body of evidence that physical activities such as walking or weight lifting may turn out to be the best medicine that physicians can prescribe to help their patients feel less anxious,” said lead author Matthew Herring, a doctoral student in the department of kinesiology, part of the UGA College of Education.’
This is straight from the report which I will post below. The specific anxiety symptoms that were relieved with exercise were: feelings of worry, apprehension, and nervousness… pretty much every symptom! haha… I also have had less stomach issues… less butterflies!
So if you’re stressed… get to the gym! Just 30 minutes working out can help you out! If you need help with a workout, just use the one below! It’s great for getting the anxiety out.
Weight Training Anxiety Workout
Aim for 3 sets of 8 reps… This is a superset workout… do exercise 1 and then straight to exercise 2… rest 60 seconds this completes one set.
- BB Cleans
- Incline Bench Press
- Cable High Rows
- Cable Shoulder Press
- BB Deadlift (straight leg)
- Calf raises
Read the article: Regular Exercises Relieves Anxiety Symptoms
Tagged as: anxiety
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh I absolutely believe that exercise and a good diet helps with so many mental health issues. Its helped me with depression and ADD, to the point where if I start to feel scattered I go do something that requires focus and precision (like power lifting or karate). My Dan (hehe) is also a huge support, he’ll either console me, kick my butt or hand me my running shoes. Often in that order too. And it works every single time.
This is absolutely spot on. I think it’s important to note that it’s not that you have to exercise with weights or for 30 minutes ors omething like that. I think it’s way more important to do it consistently rather than all-out but one time!
For anyone having trouble starting doing it – just start with 5 minutes one day and look to add a minute here and there.