Who needs the loony bin?

HI to all my amazing clients,
I'm glad to be back working again after a much needed vacation. Most of you did a great job of staying active while I was gone. I'm proud of you all.
So before I begin with my out house psychology let me say that I don't mean this to take place of professional help when needed. I've been know to say that the majority of us exercise for one reason and that is to look good naked. Today I want to give us another very important reason to exercise.
Anxiety and depression and the positive influence exercise has on it is my topic today. I know that when severely depressed or full of anxiety and fear the very last thing we want to do is get up and do physical activity. Though, this is the BEST thing we can do for ourselves! Many of you know I've suffered from severe depression myself so this is coming from experience and research. On many occasions over the years I've had clients come in severely stressed from life's stresses and after just 30 min of exercise they leave me feeling a THOUSAND times better. Hopefully that's not because they don't have to see me again for a few days. HA... I personally need physical activity daily to keep me in the right frame of mind. I went for a beautiful hike today in Madera canyon and I actually dictated most of this while hiking up some pretty steep slopes. Most of my blogs are done during or right after exercise sessions. I got to thinking during my hike that during some of the most trying and stressful times of my life I turned to hiking or exercise. When my mentor Jack Knight passed away after a hard battle with cancer I hiked that morning to clear my head and get focused for my speech at the funeral.  He had passion and enthusiasm and always tried to do the right thing. I wanted to be THAT GUY. That was a turning point for me. Today is another. Whatever higher power or Universal power is out there. I know one thing. We were given tools at our disposal to handle stress, anxiety, fear and just plain HARD TIMES. I believe every addiction facility should have a gym and exercise programs as part of there recovery.
Facts of the day:
1) Vigorous exercise for only 15 to 30 min releases feel good brain chemicals that help deal with
depression.
2)Reduces toxins in the body that may worsen depression
3)Increases body temperature that can have calming effects
4)Gain confidence. When we feel better about ourselves we bring that into our daily interactions
5) Takes your mind off of worries and the cycle of negative thoughts that feeds anxiety and depression
6)Social interaction. A friendly smile can change your WHOLE DAY!
7)Its a positive way to cope. Instead of drinking or binge eating that will only worsen symptoms.
These are just some of positive impacts it has on us. I got most of these from an article on the Mayo Clinic website that deals with this very topic.
So now that we know that we have control over something that makes us feel powerless. We are armed and ready to deal with anxiety, fear and depression. BUT WE have to act and DO something. We can't continue to wallow in the pig pen. GET UP AND DO SOMETHING PHYSICAL TODAY. NOW!! LOVE YOU ALL!
Trainer, BRIAN