Exercise & Stress Reduction

In today's session with Eli Puterman, we will be exploring the link between exercise and stress reduction. It has been shown that people with high stress in their lives can undergo transformative changes in their bodies and minds when they start moving their bodies more irregularly. Let's get moving!

Transcript

Welcome to day 15 of Insight Timers Strategies for Stress Challenge.

Well done on making it to the end.

Let's take a moment to get settled.

Close your eyes,

Take a deep breath in,

And exhale out.

Let's dive into today's strategy for stress.

Hello,

And welcome to Insight Timers Strategies for Stress Challenge.

My name is Eli Puttermann,

And I'm an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia and the Canada Research Chair in Physical Activity and Health.

Today's session is a little different from the previous ones.

You will be practicing and learning at the same time.

As part of the session,

I would like you to move your body in some way for the next 10 to 15 minutes.

It could just be a gentle walk around the neighborhood or stretches on the floor.

I know not everyone will be able to get up and move around,

Perhaps because of location or mobility issues.

In that case,

I would recommend that you listen to this session while practicing some of the breathing techniques you learned in the Stress Challenge series,

Or complete some gentle chair exercises like shoulder blade squeezes or arm circles.

Today I want to talk to you about an area of life that I am deeply passionate about.

The relationship between exercise and stress.

And how prioritizing moving your body in some way every day will change the way you manage and react to stress.

I will also provide you with tips for building a movement-infused lifestyle.

Let me start by telling you one thing.

I love moving my body,

And I do not do it as often as I would like.

I am not a fitness freak,

Not a fitness influencer,

But I am a movement enthusiast and encourager.

I try my best to work out regularly,

But like most people,

I don't always reach my goals.

But I do make sure I go for long walks every day because any movement,

Whether it's leisurely walks or intense runs,

Is good for our minds and for our bodies.

I want to provide you some background information about the mind and body.

In today's world,

Our minds and bodies are treated as separate entities,

But in reality,

They have complete influence on each other.

Chemicals released from our brains impact our bodies,

And chemicals released from our bodies impact our minds.

And no better example of the impact of the mind on our bodies is stress,

And its activation of the fight-or-flight response.

You have heard in this series that short-term manageable stress bolsters our capacity to cope,

That some stress is a good thing,

But when stress is repeated,

Like a continuous problem at work,

Or when stress is prolonged,

Like providing care for a family member with a health issue,

Or when stress is too extreme,

Like the death of the love of your life,

The chemicals released from the brain can wear down the body,

Causing both mental and physical exhaustion and problems.

Such mental and physical fatigue can make it really hard to make room for good,

Healthy choices and behaviors.

And in fact,

Our brain is programmed to choose unhealthier behaviors because they simply feel better and faster in the brain.

This is not just most likely true for you,

But for the majority of people out there.

In fact,

About 80% of research studies show that the more stress people are experiencing in their lives,

The less likely they are to move their bodies.

Now I want you to consider what happens when we move our bodies.

During physical activity,

Which is any movement of the muscles requiring an increase in energy,

Or during exercise,

Which is an activity specifically planned and structured with the goal of improving health,

Fitness,

And well-being,

There is a flood of chemicals that are released from different parts of our body,

Including our brain.

Our brains release norepinephrine that increases alertness and attention,

Serotonin that stabilizes mood,

And endocannabinoids that send out calming signals.

And with the release of mood-stabilizing and stress-relieving chemicals flooding our brains,

Comes measurable,

Real-life changes in stressful situations.

Lab experiments show that a single bout of exercise,

Like a 30-minute jog or run on a treadmill,

Can improve our attention during difficult tasks.

It can also improve the speed at which we complete these tasks.

It allows our brain to switch between tasks more easily.

And a bout of exercise improves our reasoning and our capacity to manage the task.

A single jog or run can also reduce the negative feelings we have when we get stressed out.

But what is also really important when it comes to stress is that even if our mood really drops following a stressful situation,

We recover much faster if we had recently completed a bout of exercise.

Fast recovery is resilience.

We will have lots of stressful situations in our lives.

But if we can recover more quickly,

We return to a calmer state sooner.

What makes this all really important is that these changes to a single bout of exercise take hold and become permanent when we move our bodies regularly.

The more often we move our bodies,

And the more intense it is,

While it still remains pleasurable or fun,

The more likely we are to be in a better emotional state more often.

As our exercise routines take hold,

We are also more likely to be able to focus and pay attention more often.

And to experience stressful events as something that is challenging that we are ready to tackle,

As opposed to threatening that we need to run away from.

This is especially important for people undergoing really long periods of high stress.

In the research that comes out of my lab at the University of British Columbia,

My team and I have shown that people with high stress in their lives can undergo transformative changes in their bodies and minds when they start moving their bodies more regularly.

Let me tell you about two studies in particular.

The first study was a 6-month exercise trial with adults who were providing more than 10 hours of weekly care to a family member with Alzheimer's disease.

Being a family caregiver is stressful and can lead to depression and other mental and physical health problems.

We gave the caregivers in the exercise group free gym memberships and supported them in reaching 120 to 150 minutes per week of exercise.

Those who exercised for 6 months reduced in their depression,

General stress levels,

And even the burden they felt as caregivers.

We also tracked their thoughts,

Emotions,

And stress every day,

Several times per day in fact,

For a whole week before they became exercisers at the beginning of the study,

And then again at the end.

What we found was exciting.

After 6 months of exercising,

Caregivers were still providing long-term care for the family member with Alzheimer's disease,

But felt more in control of their days.

They ruminated less about negative events in their days and improved in their emotional states as well.

In a second study that we just recently completed during the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic,

Healthcare workers were given free exercise apps for 12 whole weeks.

After 12 weeks,

The healthcare workers who worked out regularly with the apps had significant drops in their depression,

Their emotional exhaustion at work,

And even how cynical they felt about their jobs.

So if moving our bodies is good for stress,

But stress interferes with all of our best intentions to move our bodies,

How does one go about exercising when stressed out?

Well,

Over the years,

I have learned several very important ways to start moving our bodies more.

First,

It's important to set our goals internally as opposed to externally.

What does that mean?

Well,

Research shows that when our reasons for exercising are about body image and appearance,

We're less likely to stick with a new exercise routine compared to when our reasons for exercising are to improve our own health and well-being.

A second lesson I have learned is that we need to try as many different types of movement,

From dance to swimming,

From interval training to wheelchair hockey,

From group workouts to things we can do solo,

Until we discover our favorite ways to move our bodies.

It is only when we discover our favorite ways will we want to continue to do them.

A third lesson is that we have to discover the intensity we enjoy.

Some bodies and minds love the thrill of extreme sports,

And some prefer to go slowly on leisurely walks or some light stretches.

And some days we want something extreme,

And some days we want to go slowly.

Whatever today's pace is,

Lean into it.

Listen to your body.

Your body is your friend,

Not your enemy.

A fourth lesson is to savor your workout.

At the end of an activity,

Practically everyone feels more calm and is in a better mood,

Compared to where they were before the activity started.

Remember that feeling.

Savor it just like you would a perfect dessert or meal,

Because remembering the feeling will help you overcome any discomfort or hesitation the next time you decide or want to do an activity again.

And of course,

It is important to set realistic goals that are manageable and attainable.

But don't beat yourself up for missing a planned workout.

That won't help you next time to have any motivation.

Be kind to yourself,

And just set some expectations for how you will be able to overcome the next time you feel challenged.

I want to transition to a brief exercise.

Wherever you are,

If you are out for your walk,

Or if you are stretching on the floor,

I want you to stand in one place if you have full mobility in your legs,

And I want you to do some jumping jacks.

If you don't know what a jumping jack is,

You begin with your legs together and your arms down to your side.

Next,

You jump up and spread your feet out and bring your arms above your head,

Nearly touching.

Then you jump again,

This time lowering your arms back to their original position down by your side,

And bringing your legs back together.

If you have lower mobility issues,

Just raise your arms over your head and then back down again.

Each upward arms movement should be an inhale,

And each downward should be an exhale.

Let's do this as many times in a row as you want,

Maybe up to 60 seconds.

You don't have to do all 60 seconds if you aren't enjoying this,

Or if you're finding it too tiring.

So let's get started.

I will start with counting you through the very first few,

And I will remind you when we have 10 seconds left.

Okay,

Let's begin.

1,

2,

3,

4,

5,

6,

7,

8,

9,

10.

Great work,

Keep going.

Okay,

You've got 10 more seconds.

Great,

And we are done.

It can be that simple.

Even if you only make time to do one minute of jumping jacks each day or a few times per day,

It makes a difference to how you feel and how you manage stress.

So to close,

I want you to think about,

Or write down how you feel.

Do you feel energized?

Do you feel tired?

Next time you do some jumping jacks or go for a walk,

Should it be less intense or more intense?

Should it be for a longer period?

How many days can you realistically do 60 seconds of jumping jacks this week?

What if it was a 10-minute walk in your neighborhood?

Also,

Think about how you can make some small but meaningful changes to your movement routine tomorrow,

This coming week,

Over the next month,

And for the whole year.

Share these answers in the discussion forum as well.

Hello,

And congratulations on finishing Insight Timer's 15-Day Strategies for Stress Challenge.

This is Alyssa Eppel once again.

I'm here to help you wrap things up and suggest a way to incorporate some of the strategies you learned into your daily routine.

We started off day one together with a stress inventory.

I know it may have been stressful to see all the things you're dealing with on one list.

The list might feel different to you now,

Or the list might have changed.

I hope the challenge showed you or reinforced for you that while to some extent we can change our situations,

But in almost all cases,

We can change how we respond to those situations.

We can relieve some of the heavy burden of stress that we carry.

I know you just heard about exercise.

Brief bursts of exercise is one of my favorite instant strategies.

Think about adding jumping jacks or a vigorous vinyasa pose to diminish strong feelings of anxiety that would otherwise linger on.

Let's go back to day one.

Think about that list.

Is there something you realized you're stuck with that you can give yourself a break from thinking about,

From trying to control?

Recall this can feel like trying to move a boulder,

Pulling on a rope.

Can you right now try to drop the rope each day?

Can you drop the baggage at least for a brief while?

Can you get off the worry cycle?

Can you choose wonder and curiosity over worry?

Now,

A question I didn't ask you back then,

Is there something,

Some obligation on your list that you can delete or delegate or gently wind down to create more spaciousness in your day?

Or are there boundaries that you can better set to help you navigate?

Better set to help generate this space.

Let's recall any insights you might have had over the past 15 sessions.

Was there something you heard and thought,

This is what I needed to hear.

This is the wisdom I want to remember.

You might want to write down a key phrase on a post-it,

Post it near your bed,

Fridge,

Your dashboard,

Or in all of these places.

We always need help remembering.

Lastly,

Recall one practice that really resonated with you.

Is there something you instantly thought,

Yes,

This helps.

Okay,

So how can you build that more into your routine?

It might be something like remembering self-compassion or releasing embodied stress with a quick body skip or metabolizing stress with a brief burst of exercise.

Or perhaps you plan to walk to work to notice the beauty of nature.

Maybe you'll call upon the three bounce chuckle to bring laughter,

Get some endorphins flowing.

Or it might be as simple and powerful as taking a mindful pause.

Now,

How can you make this new practice stick?

How can it be part of your day?

Next,

I want you to think of something predictable that you do every day,

Like waking up,

Going to bed,

Brushing your teeth.

Take some activity that's already reliably built into your weekday.

And now take your favorite practice and staple it to this routine activity.

I find waking and bedtime are ideal times for a stress release strategy,

But breaks within the working day are also really key moments to bring your body back to ease.

Let's take parking as an example and adding breathing.

What I mean by stapling is that now after you've parked,

You turn off the key and that is the trigger to remind you to do a few minutes of breathing.

Maybe it's 4-4-8 breathing or whatever activity you've chosen to first set this habit,

Put it into your calendar at the right time of day,

Just to remind yourself of it each day.

See how this works for you.

Stapling your new tip to a fixed daily routine allows you to embed stress release into your day and after a week or two,

It can become second nature.

So remember the post-it and the staple and above all,

Be kind and patient as you keep trying.

That's why we call these practices.

We try them over and over.

Thank you for joining us,

For being together.

Wishing you much love and kindness.

Reviews

For years I was so stresses out I had trouble meditating. I could not concentrate or stay in the moment no matters how hard I tried. I slept badly every single night.

The one and only thing that finally helped was exercise. If I could make my body tired enough my brain switched off. Once I got out of the "extreme stress state" meditation became easier also.