Stress and Exercise - What Are The Benefits?
April is Stress Awareness Month and is held to help bring public awareness to the causes and management of modern stress.
What is stress?
Stress can be defined as "a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances." However, broken down into its simplest form, any internal or external stimulus that evokes a biological response is known as stress. The compensatory responses to these stresses are known as stress response. Based on the type, timing and severity of the applied stimulus, stress can exert various actions on the body. These range from small alterations of our bodily functions all the way to death.
What toll does stress take on the body?
Chronic stress can cause different responses to different parts of the body, these include:
Musculoskeletal system: muscle tension is a reaction to stress with tension headaches and migraines often associated with chronic muscle tension in the neck and shoulders.
Respiratory system: When in a stressful situation the airway between our nose and lung can constrict causing shortness of breath and rapid breathing.
Cardiovascular system: Long term stress can lead to problems for the heart and blood vessels. Ongoing stress can also increase your risk of hypertension, heart attack , or stroke.
Gastrointestinal system: Stress can make pain, bloating, nausea and other stomach discomfort felt more easily.
Immune System: Stress can weaken the immune system so that you are more likely to catch viral infections or other infections.
Nervous System: Stress can lead to anxiety, depression, loss of sleep all of which will effect memory and decision-making.
Benefits of Exercise on Stress
Luckily, exercise can help you manage your stress levels to ensure they are not causing long term harm to your health. Research has shown a small bout of aerobic exercise can have significant impact on your blood pressure in response to stress. Additional research found 30 minutes of cycling increased energy levels and calmness while reducing tiredness. For strength training, research has shown that it can reduce anxiety, chronic pain intensity, osteoarthritis, fatigue, depressive symptoms and improve sleep quality alongside self-esteem. It is important to remember that exercise is only one component of stress management and you may need to work through other areas to help with stress management.
Different types of stress?
While our bodies are well equipped to handle small amounts of stress, once stress becomes long-term or chronic, it can have serious effects on our body. Chronic stress can cause effects on the musculoskeletal, respiratory, cardiovascular, endocrine, gastrointestinal, nervous and reproductive systems. It can also cause emotional and psychological distress. With extended stressful situations the body can over-react and cause you to seek coping mechanisms such as overeating, smoking, drinking and not exercising, all of which add to the already negative effects of stress.
Symptoms of Stress
While symptoms of short term stress can cause concern, it is when stress lasts for a longer time that you may experience other physical or emotional symptoms such as:
Fatigue
Depression
Chest pain or pressure, rapid heart rate
Dizziness, shakiness, difficulty breathing
Menstrual cycle irregularities, erectile dysfunction, loss of libido
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
High blood glucose levels
