We are already aware of fact that exercise is good for our body. But do we know it can also boost our mood, improve our sleep and help us deal with depression, anxiety, stress and more?

Yet, we know this is exercise and sport are interlinked and have always been known for their physical benefits. In recent years, research has also found that sport participation can also positively affect one’s mental health. Evidence suggests that by really focusing on our body and how it feels as we exercise, we can actually help our nervous system become ‘unstuck’ and begin to move out of immobilisation stress response that characterizes PTSD or trauma. Even if we’re not suffering from a mental health problem, regular physical activity can still offer a welcome boost to our mood, outlook and mental well-being.

It seems obvious that getting regular physical activity helps us stay physically fit. But we may be surprised to learn about more subtle ways that staying active can also benefit our mental and emotional health.

Exercise is a great way of improving self esteem, whether its playing football with our mates, going for a run or a walk, exercise is great not only for our body but also our mind. Over time exercise can encourage feeling of self worth and make our body and mind feel stronger and powerful. On top of that there is also sense of achievement our mind gets from meeting a goal, whether that’s beating our personal best or even shooting a basket.

To remain healthy and fit, one is not needed to to devote hours out of his/her busy day to train at gym, sweat buckets or run mile after monotonous mile to reap all physical and mental health benefits of exercise. Just 30-minutes of moderate exercise five times a week is enough. And even that can be broken down into two 15-minute or even three 10-minute exercise sessions if that’s easier. Most of studies indicates that moderate exercise is better for everyone’s health. It means that we breathe a little heavier than normal, but are not out of breath. For example, we should be able to chat with our walking partner, but not easily sing a song. Or it can be elaborated as our body feels warmer as we move, but not overheated or very sweaty. That shows that simply moving our body is a good sign for health.

Fortunately, when we get our body moving, we’re able to boost our mood, reduce depression and stress, grow leadership and team-building skills, sharper memory and thinking, feel strong and powerful, higher self-esteem, help promote better sleep, feel more energised, build stronger resilience and cope in a healthy way.

Other mental benefits of sports exercise validated by research are as exercise positively impacts levels of serotonin, a chemical that helps regulate mental health and stimulates neurotransmitter norepinephrine, which improves mood. Physical activity releases endorphins, body’s natural ‘happy chemicals,’ and reduces levels of stress hormone cortisol. Sports are associated with lower rates of stress, anxiety, depression and suicidal behaviour. Participation in team sports reduces risk of teen substance abuse and other reckless behaviours. Team sports enhance resilience, empathy, confidence and empowerment. They have also been shown to increase executive functioning, creativity, cognitive development and self-regulation, improved teamwork and social responsibility and better well-being for teens with disabilities. Teen sports, as well as other outdoor activities, get teens outside so they can experience benefits of time in nature. Sleep improves when teens are physically active which is important because sleep is essential for maintaining mental health.

This should also be noted that single sessions of activity reduce anxiety, improve mood and raise feelings of energy that last for several hours. Long-term participation can significantly improve conditions such as clinical anxiety and depression to a degree that rival’s medication, both in adults and adolescents.

Apart from this, there are many other researches which indicate that single session is better, but if it goes collectively, it becomes best. According to research that shows team sports may be more supportive for mental health than individual sports: One study found that youth athletes in individual sports were almost twice as likely to report symptoms of depression. Team sports in particular provide a chance to unwind and engage in a satisfying challenge that improves our fitness. They also provide social benefits by allowing us to connect with teammates and friends in a recreational setting. Apart from this, it is also observed that those who are involved in school sports had lower depression symptoms, lower perceived stress and better self-rated mental health than those who do not play sports at all.

Research on working adults shows that active people tend to have lower stress rates compared to those who are less active. Mental health is becoming more and more important and rightly so! There are many different things which can have a positive effect on mental health, sport being one of them. At Sport Structures we strongly believe that sport and physical activity can have endless positive effects on mental health such as improved mood, reducing stress, better self esteem and can also help to prevent anxiety and depression.

At last, we can vow to take a good care of our health by doing regular exercise or participating in sports to be fit and gain above advantages emits from roots of exercise.

Published in The Daily National Courier, April, 20 2023

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