Fitness Friday: 5/9/25 (Impact of Activity On Mental Health)
HEY EVERYONE!
Welcome to “Fitness Friday”~
MAY is “MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH”~
⭐️Exercise has been proven to be a positive boost to our Mental Health and Wellbeing.
⭐️Exercise not only has numerous benefits for mental health, but also includes reducing symptoms of anxiety & depression, improving mood, boosting self-esteem, & enhancing our overall well-being in general. As well it helps in managing stress, improving sleep quality, and potentially increasing cognitive function!
⭐️WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO “MOVE” & ENJOY ACTIVITY?!
⭐️HOW CAN YOU GET IN SOME MOVEMENT TODAY TO BENEFIT YOUR WELLNESS?!
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO “MOVE” & ENJOY ACTIVITY?!
Pilates
⭐️HOW CAN YOU GET IN SOME MOVEMENT TODAY TO BENEFIT YOUR WELLNESS?!
Arrange a session with my sister, so we have a commitment to motivate us to actually do it.
@Clio9876
That’s great Clio!.. Pilates is a great Core & strengthening workout!
I think it’s awesome that you have your sister to get together with for added accountability & motivation! Keep up the great work & thank you for sharing! Happy Fitness Friday to you (& your sister)! 🙂
⭐️ While I love many workouts, my MOST favorite way is through ZUMBA Fitness classes! I particularly love Regular Zumba 💃 as well as Aqua Zumba!~ 💦
⭐️For this Friday, I got my Fitness in first thing this morning by attending my Aqua Zumba class. And will get out for a Walk later in the day with my Furbaby who motivates me daily~ 🐾
I've exercised all my life, strength trained for years due to my job. Jogged/,walked, fun runs, swimming, dragon boat team and danced, taught dance and taught aerobics. I am studying more in depth. Yoga, which I have practiced for 45 years. I never quit my day job. I'm 65 now. Do I use exercise to reduce stress? Kind of, I meditate while I walk somtimes. But exercise is not the panacea for me that "they" prescribe as acure for stress. It has never cured my stress. In fact not to sound like a Debbie Downer, some walks or jogs I would go out on, all they did was make me cry more. Some say, well excellent, that's what walking is supposed to do. Well..sorta kinda but for me not really. I started associating this with walkinging and it has turned me off to using exercise as stress reduction, and in fact, I found going out for walk during stress, sometimes created more stress and my walk was not pleasurable. I found my only true healing came from TIME itself. Patience. And sometimes it is fleating as well. I am now working on acceptance in my daily mantra. I'm done fighting with stress, I don't want to expend the energy it takes from me. I now also add acceptance, patience and ignorance (ignoring) the stress as much as possible, so it doesn't set up permanent home and isn't allowed to become part of me. I'm a work in progress.
@Sandhya60
Congrats to you on making Exercise & Activity a lifelong venture. (I too have taught Fitness classes for years, as well as a personal trainer)…. It’s great that you incorporate meditation practices into your walking to help.
As far as a “Cure” for stress, I’m sure that concept is more of an opinion in “to each their own” on whether it’s a cure for that individual?!.. But it definitely can help to “Lower” stress levels depending on what type of exercises you are doing (And ALSO ENJOYING)! Enjoyment must be apart of that factor. I don’t tend to do exercises or activity that I don’t “enjoy”… And if one is keeping up with an exercise or activity that is making them possibly feel “worse” mentally, emotionally or physically, I would definitely not advise or suggest that they continue to keep going with it!.. As well as knowing or delving into more on what the actual “stressor” is & where it’s stemming from…. And to perhaps look for something else to gain a better experience.
As far as using exercise to “heal” from an emotional stressor or situation, everyone is different and needs to do what is best for them. Some may need more “time” before they can do other things like activity…. (Especially if the time is needed to heal from a possible traumatic or extra emotional experience or situation)…. And Especially a situation where extra support might be needed first as well. (Such as In the form of therapy or counseling etc….)…. When I worked for the school system, I taught Zumba classes afterwards for many teachers… One of them bought another one a “giftcard” to attend my classes after she had a personal Family Trauma. And I remember when that teacher came, how she fell in love with the class! And Was nothing but smiles the entire time… She ended up attending every single class, twice a week, Until she eventually moved away... But it turned out the class, the extra support, and that one hour to focus on herself was exactly what she needed for her wellbeing!
But in the end, for boosting overall wellness, health, mood support & management, & weight goals, (& after a long stressful day), etc… Exercise is definitely a wonderful way to help improve upon those things!
Thanks for stopping by to share your response with our community. And hopefully you continue to progress to where you desire to be.
@PoliteOcean I love to dance, that's what gets me moving, I love it 😊💜
@Amanda84
IKR?!!! Me too!! It’s such an awesome activity! It definitely helps to improve my mood when I hear great music that gets me moving! 💃🪩🕺
Do you have a favorite style? (Hip hop, Zumba, Ballet, etc..etc..)?!
Thank you for sharing with us! 😊
I can't remember where I saw it, but someone once said that if exercise were available in a pill format, it would be the biggest blockbuster drug ever. I reckon it doesn't matter what you do, just move every day. I'm learning ballet to help with coordination and balance. I'm hopeless at it, but i enjoy the discipline and the feeling of stretching; it's also great to learn a new skill.
@DemiMondaine
That’s awesome that you are learning ballet 🩰. That’s the good thing about dance formats is that they can actually help us with our balance & coordination.
I think it’s wonderful that despite thinking you aren’t the greatest at it, that you are continuing to keep up with it! As well as enjoying it!.. I think that’s the most important when it comes to a workout, is that not only are we moving our bodies, but if we are enjoying the workout it will continue to keep us motivated to continue on with it. Find something you enjoy and it will never seem like work! :)
Thank you for sharing your response with us!
@PoliteOcean I like to think that if I can do it, anyone can, lol!
⭐️WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO “MOVE” & ENJOY ACTIVITY?! Cycling of course!!!
⭐️HOW CAN YOU GET IN SOME MOVEMENT TODAY TO BENEFIT YOUR WELLNESS?!
I saw this on another social....I think its great advice....
While not everyone has a "fitness tracker", I think just getting in your steps is a great start....it doesn't have to be a formal "walk" per se, just normal everyday activities....I also found that using my desk riser, standing up and not sitting down, somehow seems to up my step count even though I'm just standing still at my desk....vs days when I decide to not use it and sit all day at work....
@PoliteOcean
This right here is why I love to ride my bicycle!
@FallaciousBasisFB
Awesome!
Bike riding is so fun…(it’s been so long for me though, I wonder if I can even remember how to do it)?! 😂
Keep up the great work! 🚴
@PoliteOcean Its good to be fit certain times during the week and set a routine.
@affectionateShade7072
Absolutely agree~ 👍🏼
Thanks for sharing :)
I like playing many different sports, including Football, Basketball, Volleyball, and Archery. I've always been pretty active and I love going on hikes.
@RegalSpirit
Thats awesome! It sounds like you are pretty varied and well-rounded in your sports & activity. Which do you enjoy the most?
Keep up the great work! 👍🏼