You may have heard about the role of exercise in physical and mental health, but what makes exercise beneficial for depression and has such positive effects on the body?
Exercise and depression reduction
One of the important benefits of exercise is that it makes you feel good. When you suddenly realize that your mood has changed with a few simple sports movements, and after finishing the exercise, your body is recharged and you feel refreshed.
But what is the reason for these changes? One of the reasons is the release of hormones called endorphins during exercise, which reduce pain and relax the body.
Many people love sports and somehow cannot spend their day without sports. Scientists believe that the reason for this is the body’s desire to increase the release of endorphins.
According to researches, exercise has a function similar to anti-depressants, which creates a sense of peace of mind in a person, makes it easier for a person to sleep at night, and reduces stress. It also enhances memory.
According to research, exercise is a cheap treatment method for patients, which has a great effect on the mental health of patients with depression and reduces the symptoms of the disease in them and prevents the progression of the disease in them after treatment.
How does exercise help reduce depression?
- The chemical aspects of exercise increase levels of stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol.
- Exercise produces endorphins, which have pain-relieving properties and reduce pain.
- By shaping the body, it makes a person feel better about himself, and this will increase self-confidence and a sense of control. This good feeling leads to success in work.
- Participating in team sports and getting to know new people exchange energy and increase one’s morale, which in turn reduces depression.
- With exercise and physical activity, the mind focuses on the body and avoids dealing with stressful factors and negative thoughts. A person’s mind calms down and his creativity increases. Any kind of sport has such an effect on people.
- The successes that a person achieves in sports increase his satisfaction with life and intensify the spirit of struggle and endurance in a person.
- A person’s sadness decreases with exercise.
- Exercise makes sleep regular and comfortable. This issue plays an important role in reducing depression.
- Exercising and keeping its rules increases a person’s purposefulness and these issues have a positive impact on a person’s life.
The effect of exercise in reducing women’s depression
Depression is a mood disorder that has become an epidemic in the world. The prevalence of depression in women is twice as high as in men. One of the reasons for suffering from it is the malfunction of neurotransmitters such as dopamine or serotonin.
Exercise is one of the most important and effective ways to adjust the amount of these transmitters and restore balance to the nervous system. In addition, research shows that having physical activity reduces the symptoms of depression and anxiety and prevents recurrence after treatment.
In addition, exercise plays an important role in improving postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is a problematic and important disease that if not diagnosed and treated in time, can worsen and last.
Therefore, according to the role of exercise in reducing these symptoms, doctors prescribe and recommend exercises for women who have recently given birth.
Exercises that are suitable for treating depression
Next, we will examine the sports that are suitable for the treatment of depression. To cure depression in a short time, be sure to do the first three exercises.
Our advice is that if you are just starting, go step by step so that you don’t feel pressured and avoid exercising. In people suffering from depression, the beginning of sports should be slow and the person should not be pressured. It is better to do these exercises with the advice of a psychologist.
Run
Running is the mother of sports and brings you a lot of health. It reduces the possibility of cardiovascular diseases. It raises the mood a lot. Just 5 minutes of running a day can increase your life span and burn calories.
Running makes a person feel good by changing the neurotransmitters such as serotonin and norepinephrine.
Walking in nature
Walking is also one of the sports that has a great effect on the mind and its relaxation, and if it is done in nature, its effect is doubled.
If you spend time in nature or the forest, your anxiety will decrease and the calming hormones in your body will increase. This also improves memory.
yoga
In 2007, a research was conducted that showed that doing yoga movements reduces depression and anxiety. Therefore, yoga is prescribed for patients suffering from depression.
Also, in 2012, another research was done based on the effect of yoga on stress, and it made sure that depression and stress are reduced by doing yoga movements. This is because yoga has breathing exercises and deep and regular breathing reduces stress and thus leads to the reduction of these mental disorders.
In addition, these movements increase blood circulation in the brain and release hormones that improve the mood of the person.
Soccer
Because football is a group activity, it can change the mood of a depressed person.
Running and passing, and in general, the great vibrancy of this sport can bring a depressed person to cheerfulness, and by increasing the release of relaxing and happy hormones, the person’s brain can experience peace.
tennis
Tennis was originally an aristocratic sport and was popular among the British aristocracy. After that, it was taken to other European countries. This sport is still expensive considering the required equipment.
Tennis increases physical activity and concentration. This causes the release of serotonin and dopamine and brings peace of mind and happiness to the person.
Volleyball
This popular sport was invented by Wilhelm Morgan and after its popularity, it was included in the list of Olympic Games.
Volleyball is played in all age groups and the required equipment is a ball and a net. The dimensions of the volleyball court are 9×18 and the net is 9.5×1. This sport is performed in a maximum of 5 sets and the playing time is unlimited; And it continues until one team reaches three sets of victories first.
In volleyball, each team can hit the ball a maximum of three times and then it must send it to the opponent’s field.
Some of the benefits of playing volleyball are:
- This exercise stimulates the release of endorphins and reduces stress. In addition, doing this exercise diverts a person’s attention from stressful issues and calms his mind.
- During the game, the release of serotonin makes you happy and dopamine makes you relax.
- Volleyball is very exciting. With team play, this excitement is transferred to the individual and the individual gets energy from his teammates.
- This sport is a new opportunity for a person to meet new people and play with them.
- By observing the order of the game, a person becomes regular and lawful in his other affairs.
- During the game, when trying to win, a person gains self-confidence and gets motivation and effort in other fields of life.
- With its high mobility, this sport increases the flow and oxygen supply to the brain.
- It increases the efficiency of the heart and the cardiovascular system becomes healthier.
table tennis
The sport of ping pong was originally played in Britain and among the British princes as an after-lunch pastime, and then changed to table tennis to avoid the sun.
- This exercise prevents the occurrence of mental illnesses and by activating certain areas of the brain, it is also used to treat depression.
- Due to variety in movements and high mobility, it prevents depression.
- This sport requires high speed, which increases concentration.
- It brings peace of mind and coolness.
- Increases body balance.
- It strengthens the joints.
- It increases the power of analysis.
- It is one of the low-risk sports and everyone of any age can do it.
- It strengthens memory and intelligence and reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
- Strengthens vision.
basketball
This sport originated in America and a person named James Nye Smith founded it in 1891. But before that, there were sports like that in different parts of America.
The high activity of this exercise increases serotonin neurotransmitters, which creates a good feeling and reduces depression.
Some of the benefits of playing basketball are:
- Creating mental balance
- Creating team spirit and cooperation in people
- Strengthening self-confidence and self-improvement and concentration
- Gain freshness
- Strengthen leadership
- Increasing the power of decision making and logical judgment
- Increasing people’s mental capacities
Golf
This sport is managed under the management of the Hockey Federation and is one of the disciplines that has a colorful presence in the Olympics and the World Cup. This exercise has stretching and strength movements with a focus on breathing, which relaxes the person.
The benefits of playing golf include the following:
- Useful for the cardiovascular system
- Increase the speed of metabolism and lose weight
- Due to exercise under the sun, it increases vitamin D.
- It promotes mental health by increasing socializing and making new friends.
last word
Exercising and performing physical movements has a good mood and causes the release of serotonin, dopamine and endorphins, which bring happiness and peace.
One of the most important benefits of exercise is that it improves the health of the nervous system by regulating neurotransmitters and reduces the symptoms of some diseases such as depression and anxiety.
You can choose one of these sports and continue with other treatments until the treatment of depression under the supervision of your doctor. It is better to choose one of the two sports of yoga and walking to start; After that, if you want to choose a sport, you can also consider other options.
Comment here