Exercise can be a potent anti-anxiety measure because it can trigger release of “feel good” endorphins that help reduce anxiety and depression, and improve sleep and sexual activity. If you’re not exercising and you suffer from anxiety, now is the time to consider starting a daily program.
How Exercise Affects Anxiety
Movement is one of the simplest and most effective ways to reduce anxiety and stress. It also moderates appetite, lowers cholesterol, reduces migraine, and slows aging. When done correctly, movement and exercise can enhance self-image and self-confidence, reduce muscle and joint stiffness, reduce depression, positively affect work performance, enhance ability to relate to others, enhance breathing ability, and improve the quality of sleep.
Exercise can be as potent as a tranquilizer in its effects, with none of the side effects, if you don’t overdo it. In some cases, exercise may reduce your anxiety better than a counseling session.
Exercise is one of the most effective ways to reduce anxiety, and even panic attacks. Panic is simply the physical and emotional experience of an excessive surge of adrenaline. It is your body’s “fightor-flight” reaction gone wrong. Exercise provides a natural outlet for your body when you’re exposed to too much adrenaline. Most of my clients who undertook a regular exercise program reported feeling less vulnerable to panic attacks and having less severe attacks when they did occur.
Exercising can take you out of the daily pressure of your life and help you focus on your body. This is important because much of anxiety occurs as a result of worry and repetitive negative thinking. When you are focusing on your body, you are not worrying or obsessing, which is why rest and meditation can also lead to relaxation. The difference between exercise and quiet rest or meditation is that after a fitness activity, the effect lasts for hours, whereas the effects of quiet rest are more transient. Exercise can reduce anxiety even in individuals who are physically limited and frustrated with their ability to perform.
Exercise helps you blow off steam. It’s like an anxiety-overflow valve that can bring relief and calm. This is because exercise stimulates the release of endorphins, the soothing chemicals inside you that help relieve pain and anxiety. When done correctly, exercise can also relieve muscle tension, make you less reactive to stress, and help you sleep better. In one study, bicycling was found to be helpful in anxiety reduction, while in another, yoga produced the greatest effect on clear thinking.
Exercising can also make you look better, which in turn can affect your body image and confidence. Overexercising, however, can bring on more anxiety, fatigue, and muscle pain.
What Type of Exercise Is Best?
- Martial arts may be best for reducing depression.
- Lifting weights or running can improve confidence.
- Boxing or tennis can help you deal with anger or frustration.
- Team sports may work well if you feel lonely or lack social skills.
- Hiking can enhance your sense of spirituality.
- Swimming or yoga can decrease anxiety.
- Dancing can unblock creative dams and lift your spirits.
When You Should Take It Easy Exercising
You should take it easy exercising and consult your health-care practitioner before beginning any exercise program if you…
- have a diagnosed heart condition.
- have frequent pains or pressure in the left or mid-chest area, left neck, shoulder, or arm during or right after exercise.
- have had chest pain in the last month.
- tend to lose consciousness or fall due to dizziness.
- feel extremely breathless after mild exercise.
- were advised to take blood-pressure or heart medication by your health-care practitioner.
- have diagnosed bone or joint problems that could be made worse by high-impact exercise.
- have insulin-dependent diabetes or another diagnosed condition that requires special care.
- haven’t been physically active or are middle-aged or older and are planning a vigorous exercise program.
Debunking Exercise Myths
Be sure to debunk any myths that may be preventing you from exercising.
Myth 1: Exercising takes too much time. It only takes a few minutes each day to exercise. If you don’t have thirty minutes in your schedule for an exercise break, find two fifteen-minute periods or even three ten-minute periods.
Myth 2: Exercising makes me tired. The fact is, the more physically fit you become, the more energy you have.
Myth 3: I have to be athletic to exercise. Most physical activities do not require any special athletic skills. Many of my clients who found school sports difficult discovered several ways to exercise that appealed to them. For example, walking, which is the perfect exercise, requires no special talent, athletic ability, or equipment.
Myth 4: I’m too old to exercise. You can exercise at any age. Individuals age eighty and older have benefited from exercise programs.
Choosing an Exercise That’s Right for Your Lifestyle
You don’t have to run in a marathon or swim five miles to benefit from exercise. Check the items in the left column that appeal to you, then see which exercise might be best for you.
|
It’s important for me to… | |
So for exercise, I’ll try… |
|
____increase my self-esteem | |
dancing, martial arts, or lifting weights |
|
____feel safe | |
swimming or tai chi |
|
____feel relaxed | |
ballroom or line dancing, gardening, or walking |
|
____sleep better | |
walking, biking, dancing, martial arts |
____lose weight |
|
jogging, hiking, rowing, cross-country skiing, treadmill, stair climbing |
____be flexible |
|
yoga, tai chi, martial arts |
Why Walking Is a Good Choice
More than 70 million Americans walk for exercise. An advantage of walking is that you don’t need any high-tech equipment or to go anywhere special to work out. It’s not like being in a class where there’s pressure to keep up. When you walk, you go at your own pace.
Having the right shoes can help. When buying walking shoes…
- shop later in the day, when your feet are at their largest size.
- look for a shoe with padded insoles, mid-soles, and heel counters. Make sure the sole is firm, thick, and has good traction. The shoe should also be wide enough to accommodate a medium-weight sock.
When walking…
- hold your head high as if a gold cord were attached to the top of your head, pulling you up so you walk tall.
- step lightly, landing with your heel first.
- keep your neck and shoulders relaxed and your back flat.
- roll your weight forward across the sole of your foot, gently pushing off with your toes.
- keep your feet pointed straight ahead and your knees slightly bent.
- swing your arms as you walk.
Consider Weight Lifting
The American College of Sports Medicine believes resistance training provides important benefits for individuals of all ages and abilities. They suggest using the following guidelines when lifting free weights:
- Always warm up with stretches prior to your workout.
- Start with 1-pound weights and work up. Consult a specific weight-lifting exercise book, such as Definition by Joyce L. Vedral, PhD.
- Breathe throughout your workout; never hold your breath—it could elevate your blood pressure.
- Use smooth, slow, and controlled motions.
- Maintain good posture—working out in front of a mirror can help.
- Only move the body part you’re exercising; keep the rest of your body still.
- Complete 8 to 12 repetitions only; if that’s too easy, add more weight.
- Rest every other day to let your muscles recover.
- Stop if you feel any sharp or piercing pains.
Use Yoga to Release Anxiety and Tension
The Tension Release exercise in yoga is like an internal massage that can work out the tension from the top of the back, where all the nerve endings meet and where tightness is felt between the shoulder blades.
- 1. Stand with your back and head in a straight line, feet together, and arms at your sides.
- 2. Bend your elbows and bring your hands level with your chest.
- 3. Extend your arms straight out in front.
- 4. Push your chest out and bring your arms behind the back, bending your elbows and interlocking your fingers while pressing your palms together.
- 5. Rotate your shoulders forward and up toward your ears.
- 6. Pull your shoulders down and try to straighten your elbows.
- 7. Keep your elbows straight and your arms together and raise your arms a short distance, keeping your trunk still.
- 8. Work over time at getting your arms up to the level of your shoulders.
- 9. Slowly lower your arms while keeping your hands together and your elbows straight.
- 10. Let your head relax forward while allowing your elbows to bend and your shoulders to come forward.
- 11. Bring your arms around to the front.
- 12. Without bending your knees, let your arms and head droop toward your feet, and work toward touching your toes.
- 13. After you have mastered steps 1 through 12, clasp your hands behind your back and reach them toward the ceiling.
The Corpse Pose (also called the Sponge, or the Dead Pose) can reduce anxiety once you practice it.
- 1. Find a comfortable, quiet spot where you won’t be disturbed.
- 2. Loosen your clothes and remove your shoes.
- 3. Lie on your back with your arms along your sides, palms up, either on a bed or on a carpet or on a pad on the floor.
- 4. Close your eyes.
- 5. Let your breathing slowly move toward your center, your abdominal area.
- 6. Picture life-giving energy from the surrounding atmosphere being drawn in through your feet, filling your entire body with a calming color as you slowly let your body sink into the comfort of your bed (or floor).
- 7. Continue breathing in the calming color for up to 30 minutes.
Tips on Exercising
No matter what kind of exercise you choose, follow these tips:
- Obtain medical supervision prior to exercise if you’re over thirty-five years of age, have chest pain when you exert yourself, get short of breath with mild exertion, have pain in your legs when you walk, have swelling in your ankles, or have been told by a doctor that you have heart disease.
- Use proper equipment and clothing when exercising.
- Avoid exercising for 2 hours after a large meal, and don’t eat for an hour after exercising.
- Include at least 10 minutes of warm-up and cool-down exercises in your exercise program.
- If you find you can’t talk and exercise at the same time, slow down until you can.
- Remember to breathe throughout your workout.
- Stop before you become overtired, even if you’re in a class.
- If you exercise outdoors, be careful not to get sunburned or caught in strong winds.
- Shower and change into dry clothes after you finish your cool-down.
Overcoming Other Obstacles to Exercise
Attrition in exercise programs is a major problem. If you aren’t motivated to exercise, you won’t do it. Making exercise part of your lifestyle is an art in itself. Suggestions for making exercise a safe part of your lifestyle include:
- 1. Start small and keep it fun. Climb stairs instead of taking the elevator; walk short distances instead of driving; plant a garden, or take an evening stroll as a way to work into exercising.
- 2. Vary exercise regimes to counter boredom; for example, ride a stationery bike one day, lift weights the next, walk the next, and so on.
- 3. Keep records of daily and weekly progress and include subjective reactions—moods (“I’m starting to like this”), concentration, and sleep-pattern changes—and objective measures—changes in weight, pulse, the way your clothes fit.
- 4. Post goals, mottos, pictures of your ideal self-affirmations, plus notes of encouragement.
- 5. Picture yourself being successful in your exercise endeavors: reducing your exercise, feeling good about yourself, looking better and stronger.
- 6. Reward yourself each time you finish exercising. Congratulate yourself both for working toward exercise goals and for attaining them. For example, after a month in an exercise program, buy a new pair of running shoes, or treat yourself to a movie.
- 7. Stop exercising, or at least slow down and consult with your health-care practitioner, if any unusual or unexplainable symptoms occur.
- 8. If you have trouble motivating yourself, work out with an encouraging friend, or join an exercise class, running club, or fitness center. If you spend more time with people dedicated to exercising, you will be too.
- 9. If you need additional help, don’t hesitate to hire a personal trainer or take a class to learn the proper technique.
Be Sure to Warm Up and Cool Down
Whenever you do anything more strenuous than slow walking, make sure to warm up before each exercise session, and to cool down afterward. This will help ensure that you don’t strain your muscles or risk injury.
Here’s an easy warm-up to try. (You can also use it as your cool-down.) Remember to breathe throughout.
- 1. Shrug your shoulders 5–10 times, trying to touch your ears with your shoulders.
- 2. Do the “backstroke” 5–10 times.
- 3. Turn your head slowly to the left side, come back to center, and turn it slowly to the right side; repeat 5 times.
- 4. Standing, pull one knee toward your chest, then the other; 5 times each leg. (If balance is a problem, do this one sitting down.)
- 5. Keeping your feet together, circle your ankles 5 times clockwise and then 5 times counterclockwise.
- 6. Spread your feet apart at shoulder width and circle your hips 5 times clockwise and then 5 times counterclockwise.
- 7. Reach up toward the ceiling with one arm and down toward your knee with the other arm; hold and breathe for a count of 5; then do the reverse.
- 8. Reach up and over your shoulder and pat yourself on the back with one arm and then with the other.
- 9. Grab your right wrist with your left hand and pull it out straight in front of you; repeat with left wrist and right hand.
- 10. Stand with your feet 3 feet apart and your fingers laced behind your back, palms up.
- 11. Grab a belt with both hands and slide it down and up your back 2–3 times.
- 12. To warm up your hips and legs, sit on the floor with the soles of your feet together. Press your hands on the inside of your knees and hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
- 13. Stand about a foot away from a door frame or wall. Keeping your body straight, lean against the door frame or wall, bending first your right knee (feel the pull up the back of your left leg) and then the left knee.
How to Exercise at Work
Type the word exercise and tape it to your phone to remind you to do one or more of the following exercises every time the phone rings.
- 1. Sit in your office chair. Every time the phone rings, pull in your stomach muscles and hold for 5 seconds, but keep breathing, then answer the phone. You may get 50 abdominal exercises a day in a busy office.
- 2. Sit on your desk. Place your hands by your buttocks, pull your stomach muscles tight, and lift your legs out straight. Push down with your hands and slowly raise your buttocks off the desk. Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat at least three times a day.
- 3. While sitting in a chair, hold on to the arm rests for balance. Slowly straighten the knees, raising the legs as high as possible. Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat at least three times a day.
- 4. Sit in a chair with your feet spread 18 inches apart. Place your left palm on the inside of your right knee and your right palm on the inside of your left knee. Slowly squeeze your legs together as your resist with your hands. Hold for 5 seconds, breathing deeply. Never hold your breath. Repeat 3 times daily.
- 5. Every time you get up from your chair, stretch, putting your arms over your head and reaching for the ceiling.
Exercising in Bed
Many people enjoy doing a simple exercise routine before getting out of bed. These exercises must be done slowly and without jerking, and always on a firm mattress. Make sure to breathe throughout the workout.
Lie flat on your back and…
- 1. keep your arms relaxed at your sides. Breathe in and reach with your toes toward the end of the bed. Feel your torso and legs stretch. Exhale. Repeat 5 times. Relax.
- 2. reach with both arms over your head to touch the headboard or wall and with your feet reach for the end of the bed. Give your whole body a stretch. Return to original position. Repeat 5 times.
- 3. shrug your shoulders up and back toward the ears as far as possible; add one repetition per week, working up to a total of 10 repetitions.
- 4. turn your head slowly to the left and then to the right; add 1 turn of your head per week to a maximum of 10 repetitions.
- 5. hold your arms out in front of you and rotate your wrists clockwise and then counterclockwise, working up to 10 repetitions.
- 6. clench your fists, holding for several seconds, then extending the fingers, reaching out as far as possible, working up to 10 repetitions.
- 7. raise your right leg up as far as possible and return it to the bed, keeping the leg as straight as possible without straining your lower back, working up to 10 repetitions.
- 8. grasp one knee with both hands and bring it toward your chest while slowly moving your head toward that knee, working up to 5 repetitions with each knee.
- 9. grasp both knees with both hands and slowly pull them toward your chest while slowly moving your head toward your knees, working up to 10 repetitions.
- 10. bicycle both legs slowly, completing up to 10 circles.
Ways to Avoid Injury
- Build up your level of activity gradually over a few weeks. Avoid setting your goals too high at first so that you’re not tempted to overdo.
- Listen to your body. Your body will warn you with pain, light-headedness, or fatigue when you’re overdoing. Pay attention to those messages and stop before you injure yourself.
- Pay attention to the weather conditions. If you’re exercising outside in the cold, wear warm clothes in layers that you can take off and wrap around your waist as you warm up. Wear mittens, gloves, or socks on your hands to protect them. Always wear a hat; up to 40 percent of your body’s heat can be lost through your neck and head. In hot climates drink lots of fluids. Wear a plastic water bottle strapped to your waist if it’s especially hot and wear light, loose-fitting clothes. Do not wear rubberized or plastic suits, sweatshirts, or sweatpants to try to lose weight; this type of clothing can cause dangerously high body temperatures and result in heat stroke.
- Caution: If you have recently undergone surgery or suffer from severe arthritis or osteoporosis or have orthopedic problems, consult with your health-care practitioner prior to exercising.
How Often and For How Long Should You Exercise?
Try to exercise every day. This may sound like a lot now, but soon it will become part of your daily regime. If thirty minutes a day is too much for you, try fifteen minutes twice a day. Purchase a videotape for aerobics, kick boxing, tai chi, weight lifting, yoga, or some other exercise, or tape your favorite exercise show from TV and work out to it.
Remember not to tire yourself out or stress yourself. Easy does it! If you try to do too much, you will become frustrated and may give up on exercise. Plan your workouts so that you don’t overdo. Here’s how one of my clients planned his exercise session:
Choosing an Exercise Goal That’s Right for You
Now you have enough information to choose well, so it’s time to pick an exercise goal that’s right for you. Below you’ll find some goals to choose from. Select at least one and make an agreement with yourself to follow through, or devise your own exercise goal. It’s all up to you.
Summary
- 1. Use exercise to reduce anxiety and panic attacks.
- 2. Find the best way to exercise for you.
- 3. Make sure you know if you should be taking it easy exercising.
- 4. Debunk any exercise myths you hold.
- 5. Learn ways to motivate yourself to exercise.
- 6. To avoid injury, be sure to always warm up before exercising, and cool down after you finish.