Movement is Medicine

A couple of weeks ago it was Mental Health Awareness Week, and the theme chosen for this year was the vitally important one of movement. Movement is essential not only for improving our physical wellbeing, but also our mental state.

Depression, anxiety, stress, low mood, low energy, poor memory, low confidence, poor sleep, inability to socialise or meet new people… these are all things that movement and exercise have been shown to help with, and very successfully too.

And like so many things to do with exercise, you don’t have to do much to start to feel the benefits.

And yes, I am interchangeably using the terms movement and exercise. I am aware of the difference. Movement is simply the act of moving, whereas exercise has more of a purpose to it: it’s an activity requiring physical effort, carried out to sustain or improve health and fitness. So whether you are simply moving or purposefully exercising, you will be improving your mental state.

But there are often barriers to exercising or moving, usually involving not enough time for one reason or another. 

One of these could be the age-old one of work. It has a habit of getting in the way of people exercising, or people are so stressed from work that they don’t feel like doing any form of exercise. However, if they were to move a little, such as getting a walk in, they may well find that their stress diminishes. Walking can also help you think clearly.

Another oft-cited barrier to exercise is that of family commitments. Of course you want, and need to, spend time with your family and children. Could you be exercising together? Playing hide and seek, kicking a ball about, going for a walk in the park… these are all great forms of movement that are also brilliant for your mental health.

Sometimes we have an injury or a disability that stops us from doing the exercise that we’d like to do, or are used to doing. This requires us to be a little bit inventive as we need to find an alternative, instead of stopping altogether. 

There are other barriers to exercise: you don’t have access to a safe space to be active, or perhaps you have had negative experiences of physical activity in the past, such as facing stigma, discrimination, or lack of understanding from people around you. These are genuine issues and barriers to being more active. However, they are not insurmountable, and can be overcome with a little compassion and thoughtfulness.

The benefits of moving more, and doing so with a bit of purpose far outweigh the costs of not doing so. And generally speaking, most of the solutions are very cheap, if not free.

So, if you are feeling a little bit under the weather mentally, try to move a bit more.

Maybe go for a walk. Or dance around the kitchen or living room to one of your favourite tracks (no one is watching so go for it!). Be a little bit silly and you may find yourself smiling again.

And if you’d like something a little more structured or have certain goals in mind, click the button below to book a chat with me.