Using Exercise to Relieve Stress by Kayla Byers, CM 107

Using Exercise to Relieve Stress by Kayla Byers

            The purpose of this blog post is to talk about relieving stress by exercising.  Use exercise to relieve stress, to forget about what happened at work, to forget about your day, and to have a clear mind.  I feel like I have a rush of energy after doing a workout; it is exhilarating. 

            I think exercise is an effective way to relieve stress as it releases endorphins in the body.  Endorphins are neurotransmitters which is responsible for the production of your brain’s feel-good response.  Exercising improves your mood; it can boost yourself confidence it also helps with sleeping better at night.  This is very important to me as I like to exercise because it not only does it relieve stress, but I can forget about everything that happened that day and focus on my workout.  Who here likes to exercise to relieve stress?  How does it make you feel?  I feel energized and empowered after I finish a workout, it makes me feel like I have accomplished something. 

            For people that do not like to exercise it would be good to start, even if you just go for a short walk to get your heart rate up a little bit. However, for the people that cannot exercise due to medical conditions or have a tough time moving around, this can be quite difficult.  There are other ways you can relieve stress where you can exercise for example: A stress ball is a form of exercise and a form of relieving stress.  I find whenever I exercise I am very aware of my body and what I put into it.  I tend to make better choices in what I eat. 

            Nutrition is very important when it comes to exercising.  To get the max benefit of exercising the human body needs healthy food for fuel.  For example: It is like gas for your car, without it your car will not run.  Nutrition plays a vital role in managing stress as well.  Eating a well-balanced diet has many benefits, as I stated earlier it plays a vital role in fighting stress.  For instance, eating healthy improves brain functioning, immune function, it lowers blood pressure, it improves circulation, and it can eliminate toxins in the body.  In addition, eating healthy and drinking water throughout the day is super important; drink at least 8 glasses of water per day.    Stress can cause anxiety and depression, so relieving stress is very important.  However, not all stress is bad, so having the good stressors in your life is also important.  Positive stress can give you motivation and help you with daily tasks, it can give you that burst of energy!

            I want to talk about my personal experience with CrossFit, and share with my audience how I lost 70 pounds that I gained during pregnancy.  Prior to becoming pregnant, I have always been involved in exercising and staying active.  During pregnancy I ate whatever I wanted; I did not realize that what I was eating would have a negative impact on my body.  This unfortunately led to me gaining 70 pounds, which was not at all healthy baby weight.  I felt so miserable and did not think that I could ever lose the weight.  It is very stressful taking care of a newborn, and I was not motivated to even eat healthy, or do anything exercise related. 

            One day I was reading on a friend’s Facebook profile.  She was involved in CrossFit and she posted pictures of her progress.  I decided to take advantage of this opportunity, so I went to a CrossFit gym in Altoona called Priority CrossFit.  I tried it out for two weeks free which and discovered that I really like it.  The workouts are not easy, but they are fun, and they get your heart rate up.  CrossFit is not just lifting weights; you have cardio, weight training, and plyometrics.  After months went by, I started to see improvements. I started losing weight and gaining muscle, which felt great.  I stuck with it for five months and lost the 70 pounds I gained during pregnancy, my before and after pictures were astonishing. 

            Finally, I want to encourage the people who want to try CrossFit but are afraid because they think it is too hard, or are afraid of failure.  You would be surprised what your body can do, our bodies are like machines.  The amount of strength and power you can gain by lifting is impeccable; you just have to tell yourself you can do it!