Enhance Your Mood With Movement

Image @elleusa magazine 1985

Each and every time I feel low, in a state of “why-bother” and my post-pardum depression and anxiety-conditioned looping creep into the moment,  I realize I haven’t moved my body in the morning, in a few days. There’s always the excuse: the boys are in hockey tournaments over the weekend, I had carpool a few mornings in a row, I just washed my hair and don’t want to sweat, blah blah blah. I laugh at the realization (every time), but my humanness takes over every so often and that’s ok. Rather than forcing against, I allow and then I gather the motivation and move.

Any form of movement, for any duration of time, does have a powerful effect to completely transform your mindset, optimizing your mental health.

Neuroscientific research claims that by increasing the cardiovascular rate, a surge of oxygenated blood moves through neuronal circuitry optimally, thereby increasing the “feel-good” release of feel-good neurotransmitters and chemicals such as dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins. These chemicals are necessary for the body to process and lower emotions such as anxiety and depression, improving feelings of motivation and inspiration,  mitigating the mammalian brain from fighting or flighting against perceived threats.

In addition, movement during the day (especially before lunch) enables the body to up-regulate the cardiovascular system inviting the body to be “more alive” during the day, in accordance with your circadian rhythms. This is imperative because your body then produces serotonin. Melatonin (the natural sleep drug) is derived by serotonin, therefore the more serotonin you produce during waking hours, the more melatonin produced, aiding the brain waves to slow down efficiently, moving into a deeper state of sleep, enabling your body to rest, digest and repair that much more. Not to mention, with an optimal nights rest, naturally your stress levels and reactivity are lower during the day, promoting genuine happiness.

Not only does movement move the blood steadily, your lymphatic system is which encourages sweat production: necessary for detoxification of internal organs and the release of energy obstruction. When lymph moves and fascia (connective tissue that surrounds and connects structures within the body) shakes, inflammation of the body is kept at a minimum and immune health is enhanced as fluids are balanced within the body. Sweating of course encourages endorphins to be released, boosting mood, confidence and resilience.

Want to make some form of movement a part of your daily morning routine? Start with a minimum, but CONSISTENT, commitment. Meaning, commit to at least 21 days, 15 minutes a day. And when you begin to tell yourself to “take a day off” or you naturally skip a few days from your normal routine, feel the discomfort and emotionality that you begin to encounter (which you will - I always do). Feel your physiological and mental response to stagnation. By exploring with curiosity, your behaviours and patterns, you begin to realize you are reaffirming chemically how you don’t want to feel. In this moment of witnessing and feeling, you hold a choice.

And if you need a lil extra encouragement, buy yourself a new outfit. Always does the trick for me.

E