Reduce Stress With Movement

I recently turned 55 and I’m more conscious of taking care of my body (and mind) more than ever. Part of the reason is so I can keep living an extraordinary life far into the future; but it’s also about making life better here and now. One way I’m doing both is by reducing stress with exercise. 

What Happens When You’re Stressed

Right now we’re having conflict with a neighbor over a shared fence we’re replacing and it’s been really stressful. When I’m stressed, my stomach tightens up, then it spreads to my chest, and eventually I get a headache. In the worst times I end up with a migraine. 

I went to bed feeling all tight inside and the feeling was still there this morning when I woke at 4:30am. Not a great start to the day, for sure. I considered meditating which sometimes is helpful, but I knew that my busy mind would just take over. When dealing with stress, common reactions are to: 

• Think your way through it
• Numb out with distractions (like social media)
• Let it take over your day

Since I’d done all those things the previous day and I still woke up stressed, I knew I needed to do something different. You guessed it - I decided to get active. I’m trying to manage my stress with movement and even trying to train my body to thrive under stress. 

How Exercise Helps Reduce Stress

If there’s one thing you can do to get through stressful situations quicker and with more resilience, it’s to move your body on a regular basis. Even better is to use exercise in response to stress. That’s because exercise actually trains your body to handle stress by mimicking the fight or flight response, so that you get better at dealing with it.

In other words, exercise is a way for your body to “practice” stress so it knows what to do when stress strikes. As an added bonus, the endorphins can give your mood a boost. So, a quick walk or workout can help take the edge off as stress occurs.This is also important because cortisol (your body’s stress hormone) can make it harder to manage your appetite, sleep, or have the energy to make good-for-you choices. 

Simple Ways to “Move” Through Stress

Having a regular workout routine is ideal because, if you’re like me, stress makes it harder for me to get things done. And if exercise isn’t a go-to for you already, it will be even harder to get the motivation to move. I know exercise always helps me, but in the moment, it’s difficult to convince myself. 

Here are some simple ways to use movement to reduce stress without doing a full-blown workout: 

• Break up your day with 15 to 30 second stretches when you start feeling overwhelmed.
• Doing light yoga before bed will help calm your mind and wind down for sleep.
• Or (my favorite) taking a short walk outside for fresh air and to stretch your legs. 

The bottom line is that stress management is a key part of gut health, immunity, sleeping well, and even protecting your brain health. It’s also easier to maintain fitness than to try to get it back. (Trust me, I know!)