Choosing to exercise can influence how you look, how you feel, how long you could live, and who you surround yourself with.
If you are reading this, it means that you already took action. Clicked on a link, wanting to increase your knowledge. Well done!
Let's talk today about the influence of our brain on our physical condition.
A) Physical and mental health are correlated and the relation can go both ways.
It is proven that "Exercise improves mental health by reducing anxiety, depression, and negative mood " 1 (Callaghan P. 2004.) The raison is that exercise releases chemicals like endorphins and serotonin that are pleasure hormones having for effect to improve your mood. 2
On the other side of the coin, anxiety and depression can cause real physical symptoms like pain and fatigue. "Symptoms associated with depression include joint pain, limb pain, back pain, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, psychomotor activity changes, and appetite changes. " 3
As you can see. Not exercising can you feel bad, and feeling bad can stop ou from wanting to exercise... You could get into a downwards spiral, as your mood will make it harder to be willing to naturally cure yourself.
B) Participating in a social activity can make you live longer.
Sociologists have played a central role in establishing the link between social relationships and health outcomes 4, explaining that you probably take care of yourself more if you have to be seen in public for example. Many studies provide evidence that social ties influence health behavior especially related to weight control (see a review in Umberson, Crosnoe, and Reczek 2010)5.
Furthermore, Berkman and Syme 6 (1979) showed that the risk of death in individuals with the fewest social ties was more than twice as high as the risk for adults with the most social ties.
C) Exercise and leisure activities can keep your brain stay sharp for longer.
Social interactions can help you to keep your bain sharp. Putting yourself in a situation where you have to react to what other people say. Confront ideas, argument your point, and use your memory can all help you stay sane for longer.
Leisure activities like reading, playing board games, playing musical instruments, and dancing are highly associated with a reduced risk of dementia and Alzheimer's. 7
Physical exercise is also essential for maintaining good cerebral functions as it facilitates blood flow to the brain and may encourage new brain cell survival. 8
D) Choosing the group you want to belong to can shape your future.
Have you heard the phrase: "You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with" by Jim Rohn. Well, according to research by social psychologist Dr. David McClelland of Harvard: the people you habitually associate with, determine as much as 95 percent of your success or failure in life. He was mostly researching business and wealth relationships in this study. But the point is that you can influence your own beliefs and limitations by choosing who to surround yourself with.
When it comes to relationships, we are greatly influenced (whether we like it or not) by those closest to us and it is important to feel challenged by our friends to make sure that we grow and continuously learn from them. 9
Therefore, to live a happy and healthy life, I advise you to be part of a sports club instead of a wiskey club... And to surround yourself with people you are looking up to.
CONCLUSION.
Most people only see the direct physical benefits of physical activity. Like weight control and lower risks of diabetes, cholesterol and muscular-skeletal injuries.
But the benefits of exercise are as much psychological and social as they are physical. In Fit and Fun Life, we are trying to provide you with exercises, but we also want you to enjoy it and provide you with a group of like-minded people. Let's grow together and uplift each other!
Please join our WhatsApp group "Fit for Life" here: https://chat.whatsapp.com/F0muOrfPEUV6mT9TWc5BpT
Or our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/fitandfunlife/ or by searching "Fit for Life"
REFERENCES
1. Exercise: a neglected intervention in mental health care? Callaghan P. J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 2004;11:476–483.
2. Exercise and mental health. Mental halth Direct . https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/exercise-and-mental-health
3. The Link Between Depression and Physical Symptoms. Madhukar H. Trivedi, M.D. Prim Care Companion. J Clin Psychiatry. 2004; 6(suppl 1): 12–16. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC486942/
4. Social Relationships and Health: A Flashpoint for Health Policy. Debra Umberson and Jennifer Karas Montez. J Health Soc Behav. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2011 Aug 4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20943583/
5. Social Relationships and Health Behavior Across Life Course. Debra Umberson 1, Robert Crosnoe, Corinne Reczek. Annu Rev Sociol. 2010 Aug 1;36:139-157. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21921974/
6. Social networks, host resistance, and mortality: a nine-year follow-up study of Alameda County residents. L F Berkman, S L Syme. Am J Epidemiol. 1979 Feb;109(2):186-204. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/425958/
7. Leisure activities and the risk of dementia in the elderly. Joe Verghese, Richard B Lipton, Mindy J Katz, Charles B Hall, Carol A Derby, Gail Kuslansky, Anne F Ambrose, Martin Sliwinski, Herman Buschke. N Engl J Med. 2003 Jun 19;348(25):2508-16 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12815136/
8. Physical exercise and dementia. Australian Government. https://www.dementia.org.au/sites/default/files/helpsheets/Helpsheet-DementiaQandA08-PhysicalExercise_english.pdf
9. Understanding the Law of Environment. Amy Snow. Athletes in action. https://athletesinaction.org/workout/understanding-the-law-of-environment