Five Ways Running Can Help Your Mental Health

Running for me has a direct correlation on my mental health. Running and mental health are very often spoken about together and can be very intertwined.

Mental Health and Athletics have been in the news a lot lately. I think it is a conversation that is extremely important. Athletes at a high level are held to a different standard and have different pressures than the everyday athlete. It is important to have the conversation of elite athletes and mental health. BUT I think it is equally important to discuss the benefits that exercise can have on the average person. My hope is that the conversations can be had without causing confusion. Exercise helps your mental health. Elite athletes have a lot of other factor aside from the actual physical activity of their sport that effect their mental health.

When making running a habit and part of your exercise routine, you are impacting more than just your physical health. Running has a ton of mental benefits.

5 Ways Running and Help Your Mental Health!

1. Reduce Stress. Running is great for stress management. Running and exercise in general directly effects your stress hormones, allowing you to better relieve and manage stress throughout the day.
2. Mood Enhancer. When you hear a runner say they need to go for a run to turn their day around. There is some science to back that. Increased blood flow to the brain during running directly translates to the part of your brain that manages stress and improves mood.
3. Reduce Anxiety. According to the ADAA , some studies show that running and exercise can work as well as medication for some people. The thought is that running (and other forms of exercise) helps the body and brain manage stress. More Fitness Tips to Handle Stress can be found HERE.
4. Keeps the Brain Young. There are multiple studies that have concluded that running and/or daily aerobic activity slows down the cognitive decline of the brain. To read more about this, check out the TIME Magazine article HERE.
5. Improve Sleep. Running improves your quality of sleep. Sleep and mental health are very connected. Poor sleep leads to more stress, anxiety, and depression. With better quality sleep, mental health can improve. For More on this HERE is a study about sleep and the correlation with mental health.

Questions:

How does running help you in your everyday life?

Have you noticed a change in your mental health when you are running and when you are not?

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