Mend Your Mental Health With EXERCISE

I love the movie “Legally Blonde” with Reese Witherspoon. Her entire outlook on life is so inspiring and motiviating. If you have not seen it, man/woman/child/grandmorther, GO RENT IT! It’s well worth the $2 fee and the 90 minutes of your time. There’s a part in the movie where Elle (Reese Witherspoon) is before the judge, discussing her client’s innocence in the case. She says “I just don’t think that Brooke could’ve done this. Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”

Endorphins are produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus  during exercise, excitement, pain, consumption of spicy food, love and orgasm, and they resemble the opiates in their abilities to produce analgesia and a feeling of well-being.  I’m sure you’ve heard of “runners high”…this is just one example of the way we refer to the endorphin boost from exercise.

When I speak to people in-depth about their exercise habits, and how frequently they work out, I point out to them the correlation of how they FEEL better, happier, lighter, less stressed when they workout.  NEWSFLASH – it’s not just because you’re losing weight, inches, etc…it’s because of the endorphins!  When they fall out of that routine, they feel slumped, stressed, tired and more irritable.

So many people want a “quick fix”.  They wish they could look like an athlete, but don’t put in any of the effort.  They wish they could lose weight, but don’t want to do the work.  They want to feel happier, so it must be depression or anxiety.  They go to the doctor, and guess what?  The doctor, all too often, puts them on medication!  Hello people, that is NOT the solution.

Your body is a machine.  Treat it like a car…if it sits too long, it sputters and has problems in the fuel line.  If you put the wrong fuel in there, you can damage your engine.  SAME IS TRUE WITH YOUR BODY!!

1. workout regularly – even if only 20-30 minutes at a time, 3 days a week.  You’ll increase your endorphins, making you feel happier…maybe even lose some weight or tone up 😉
2. eat right – avoid all the processed foods.  Guess what?  There are chemicals, sugars, unhealthy fats and other things that damage your body.  Those unnatural substances are like poison and the more you eat them, the more you crave them.

I’m not saying don’t go to the doctor if you’re depressed.  What I am saying is, take care of yourself…inside and out.  Working out and eating properly will do wonders for your mental health.  If not 100%, it will definitely contribute.  And best part, you could be in the best shape of your life!

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