Workouts: More than Endorphins

“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

A Workout for your Brain.

You’re a first responder. You know the reasons why working out can benefit your mental health in regards to the release of endorphins that occurs during a good workout. Maintaining a workout routine is of the utmost importance for your physical wellness, but can also greatly impact your mental wellness in a few different ways.

Working out too much can actually be detrimental to your wellbeing. Maybe you’re working out too often, too long, with too much intensity or weight. A lot of time this can be a result of unrealistic expectations, wanting to feel something (pain) other than numbness, or trying to avoid what your brain is thinking about by keeping your body busy. Either way this pattern is unhealthy for your brain and your body. Setting healthy goals is important so your don’t continue to raise the bar on yourself to unhealthy levels.

While a regular workout is healthy, you can also help your brain manage anxiety, anger, and other emotions through working out. It is harder for a physically tired body to be anxious or angry. Furthermore, when the brain’s amygdala is activated is when we feel the fight/flight/freeze/fawn instincts. Sometimes when the amygdala is triggered we don’t know how to express what we’re feeling because we may not fully understand why we’re responding the way we are. In such cases it’s helpful to have a strength based AND cardio based workout. Cardio workouts can mimic the flight response and strength based workouts can mimic the fight response. This helps your brain take the edge off of the emotions you may be feeling.

Working out is good for your brain in a lot of ways, just make sure to do it safely. Also, if it’s your primary coping skill, please be sure to have a back up in case of injury.