RunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running MagazineRunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running Magazine
  • Home
  • Tools
    • BMI Calculator
    • Pace Calculator
    • Daily Calorie Calculator
    • Kilometers to Miles Distance Converter
    • How to Calculate Heart Rate with Heart Rate Calculator
    • How to Use The Best Ideal Weight Calculator
  • Online Races
  • Crossline Shop
  • Virtual Race as a Service
  • Cool Deals
  • About RunSociety
  • Advertise
  • Contact RunSociety
Categories
  • Community
  • Food & Nutrition
  • Gears
  • Health & Injuries
  • Highlight
  • Inspiration
  • Interviews
  • News
  • Opinions
  • Races
  • Reviews
  • Training
Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
  • Races
  • News
  • Highlight
  • Reviews
  • Gears
  • Interviews
  • Food & Nutrition
  • Training
  • Inspiration
  • Health & Injuries
Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
RunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running MagazineRunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running Magazine
  • Home
    • About RunSociety
    • Advertise
    • Contact RunSociety
  • Tools
    • BMI Calculator
    • Running Pace Calculator
    • Daily Calorie Calculator
    • Kilometers to Miles Distance Converter
    • Heart Rate Calculator
    • Best Ideal Weight Calculator
  • Online Races
  • Top Activewear
  • Virtual Race as a Service
  • Super Sale!
  • Shop
RunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running MagazineRunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running Magazine
Home»Highlight»Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life
Highlight

Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life

Charlotte LamBy Charlotte LamJune 4, 2013Updated:October 11, 20185 Mins Read
Facebook WhatsApp Twitter Email LinkedIn Pinterest
Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life
Share
Facebook WhatsApp Twitter Email LinkedIn Pinterest

You try to lead a healthy lifestyle, but sometimes it’s hard to get out of bed, lace up your shoes, and go to the gym. After a long day, exercise may be the last thing you want to do.

Running however, is one of the best ways out there to relieve stress and improve your mood. Here are some things running does to reduce stress and to find motivation to keep going when your day gets difficult.

Running boosts your endorphins.

It has been known since the 1980s that the so-called “runner’s high,” the feeling of euphoria many people experience after long-distance running and other intense exercise, is the result of increased levels of endorphins in the brain.

These “feel good” hormones are released at low levels throughout the day, but according to doctors at the Mayo Clinic, running causes them to be released at higher levels.

This means that after a long and stressful day, lacing up your shoes and hitting the pavement can help you feel better and serve as an outlet for releasing some of the tension and frustration you may be experiencing.

Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life

Running is a long-term mood stabilizer.

Running also serves as one of the long-term ways to relieve stress. People who exercise regularly tend to be less reactive to stress than people who lead sedentary lifestyles, and there’s no exercise out there that is more natural and inexpensive than running.

According to the International Journal of Stress Management, exercisers experienced less anxiety and showed a reduced change in heart rate and blood pressure when they were placed in a stressful situation than non-exercisers did.

Running can not only serve as an outlet for stress; it can also make you better able to cope with the stress you have to face on a daily basis.

Running in your life should be a source of reducing stress not causing more of it.

Running mimics meditation.

While running trains the body, meditation trains the mind. Studies have shown that people who meditate display more balanced brain chemistry and are less depressed and more able to cope with stressful situations.

Running is a peaceful, repetitive activity, and according to Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, author of “Running With the Mind of Meditation,” running provides stillness the mind needs in order to meditate.

Runners can focus on being mindful of each step they take and the form of the body, on experiencing joy and appreciation of the body’s ability to move, and on being one with nature on an outdoor run, all of which can take your mind off stressors and provide you with a healthy outlet.

Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life

Running builds social bonds.

Running doesn’t have to be a solo activity. Singapore have running clubs that periodically go on group runs.

These groups can help you make new friends and explore fresh routes. People who are active within their communities on average experience less stress and live longer than do loners. Another option is to compete in races open to the public. The running community is very supportive; your toughest competitor will always be yourself.

There are more than 44 running events advertised in Singapore alone in 2013. You never know who you will meet at a running event, and the sense of connection to a community outside your home or workplace can be priceless in reducing the impact of stress on your life and health.

Exercise As Therapy: 5 Ways Running Helps De-Stress Your Life

Running improves health.

Just as stress predisposes the body to illness, being ill is stressful. Stress and illness are a vicious cycle that a running habit can help to break. Running regularly leads to improved energy, weight loss, improved control of blood sugars, fewer aches and pains, and improved cardiovascular health.

Just knowing that you are doing something to reduce your risk of the chronic illnesses that plague Western society can reduce stress in and of itself. Constant pain, doctor visits, and fatigue interfere with your ability to function on a day to day basis and produce stress of their own.

Reducing the risk of all these ailments is one of the many running benefits. Running can also serve as a starting point to develop a generally more healthful lifestyle. As you get better at running, you may find yourself making healthier dietary choices and getting more sleep in order to improve your performance. All of these changes improve your general health, and they all start with a pair of jogging shoes.

As you can see, in addition to being a fun, easy, and natural way to get fit, running was practically designed to relieve stress.

From boosting your body’s production of natural feel-good, stress-fighting hormones to helping you make connections in your community and keep your physical health intact, running can improve your mental health and make your life richer and more pleasant.

So what are you waiting for? Get out there and beat some stress!

Fitness Lifestyle
Share. Facebook WhatsApp Twitter Email LinkedIn Pinterest
Charlotte Lam
Charlotte Lam
  • Website

A health enthusiast, Charlotte creates beautiful content with the knowledge that she actively seeks in healthy living and clean eating. A former lecturer at Temasek Polytechnic (TP), where she passes on her skills in her profession, she is also the co-founder of this amazing running magazine.

Related Posts

Dos and Don’ts for Runners During Chinese New Year

January 9, 2023

23 New Year’s Resolutions for Runners To Have a Better Year

December 31, 2022

How to Stairs Running with Proper Stair-Climbing Technique

December 18, 2022
Add A Comment

Comments are closed.

Subscribe to Updates

Get free access to the latest running event updates, promotions, product announcements and much more!

How to Be Part of the ASICS World Ekiden 2022

November 17, 2022

Run For Singapore 2022: Moving Towards a Fascinating Future Together

June 3, 2022

Under Armour’s All Out Mile Has Your Name Written on it

May 29, 2022

How to Find Your Own Interesting Routes to Run

May 26, 2022
RunSociety – Asia's Leading Online Running Magazine
Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
  • Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact RunSociety
  • Community Guidelines
  • Ethics Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Policies

With a commitment and pride to quality content for the running community. RunSociety is, and always has been an independent body.

Copyright © 2011 - 2023 RunSociety. All Rights Reserved. Designed & Developed In House.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Go to mobile version