Although exercise may be the last thing you feel like doing when you’re not feeling your best, it offers a wide range of benefits for supporting positive mental health. Physical and mental health are so closely linked – many things that affect your body also affect your mind and vice versa. Think about having an ache or pain – it’s not just the physical feeling you have to put up with but the mental frustration. It can make us more irritable, mentally tired and less motivated to enjoy our lives, even though technically it’s a physical issue and not a psychological one. It follows that if we can do something to make our bodies feel better, our mind will often come along too! Mental health conditions can often affect our physical health and may be experienced alongside conditions such as fibromyalgia, and being over or underweight. Exercise can also benefit these conditions. Read on for 5 key ways in which exercise can help to improve mental health.
If you are struggling with a physical or mental health condition and are unsure of what exercise options are out there and what would be best for you, you can self-refer to a scheme such as Bury Exercise and Therapy Scheme (BEATS), where exercise referral officers will support you in helping to manage your health with exercise. You can self - by following this link. The Creative Living Centre are also available to advise on all aspects of mental health and can also signpost to local facilities.
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