Exercise The Stress Buster

Stress is everywhere. From the time you get up in the morning
until you retire at night there is never enough time. From one
fire to another you are in a constant battle to get everything
accomplished. When your life is filled with stress your body
takes a beating.

Your body reacts to stress by producing more of the stress
hormone cortisol. The more cortisol your body produces the
more relaxed your immune system becomes. This leads to a
slower response to healing.

In order for you to conquer stress you must learn how to relax
and relieve your body of the tension and stress that you are
constantly under. Exercise is an excellent way to deal with
stress. Through exercise you can relieve pent-up energy and
tension, relax your body and mind. As an added benefit you
will also burn fat, improve your cardiovascular system, lower
your blood pressure, get in better shape, and feel better
overall.

Exercise provides an outlet for negative emotions such as
worry, irritability, depression, hostility, anger, frustration, and
anxiety. You can dissipate these feelings by simply taking it out
on the tennis court, running, or punching a bag. Regular
exercise provides the opportunity to manage the stress
hormone and helps your body return to a balanced state more
quickly.

Let’s look at some different types of exercises that you can
choose from.

Aerobic Exercise

Aerobic exercise uses your major muscle groups through
walking, running, swimming, and cycling. This type of exercise
strengthens your cardiovascular system by increasing your
heart and respiratory rate and brings in more oxygen into the
body.

Anaerobic Exercise

Anaerobic exercise builds your muscle strength and power.
Isotonic and Isometrics are two types of anaerobic exercises.

Isotonic uses your muscles to contract against an object with
movement such as weight lifting or resistance training. Your
muscles and bones become stronger.

Isometric exercise is contracting your muscles against
resistance without movement such as lifting weights and
holding the position. You are isolating that muscle.

Your goal is to select an exercise routine that you will enjoy
and can do for at least 20 minutes, three to five days a week.
When you think of the positive effects that exercise can have
you will begin to think of exercise as an enjoyable activity. You
will purposely become active.

You will begin to notice that your stress levels will decrease as
you commit to a regular exercise routine. You should feel more
energized, and best of all, you should look and feel better.

Exercise is a “want to” activity. You must want to exercise in
order to reap the benefits from exercise. If you are living life in
the stress lane, then you need to jump over to the exercise
lane and leave the stress behind.

Start some form of exercise today