One of the best ways to boost your happiness is exercise. It’s one of the few activities that can elevate your mood and help you feel better instantly. When you feel down, exercise offers a simple, effective way to lift your spirit.
Exercise can:
- Reduce stress
- Keep your mind off negative thoughts
- Provide a sense of accomplishment
- Boost self-esteem
These benefits can help with depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions. Even if you don’t have a mental illness, exercise may be able to improve your overall outlook on life.
30 Minutes of Meditation + 30 Minutes of Walking
If you are feeling down, meditating for 30 minutes can help you get control of the feelings that are going on in your head. Walking for another 30 minutes is not only an easy way to get exercise, but it is also good for your brain. When combined, both of these activities will help you feel better.
30-Minute Tai Chi Session
Tai chi is a martial art that originated in China. It has many benefits, as it helps to increase strength, flexibility and balance. It also helps to reduce stress and improve focus.
It has a calming effect by helping you breathe deeply and focus on the present moment, which is important if you are feeling sad.
This exercise can be done anywhere and will help if you are feeling sad or stressed out! This video of a 30-minute tai chi session will help you feel better in no time at all!
A Series of Hatha Yoga Movements
If you are a beginner to the world of yoga, Hatha yoga is a good place to start. The word “hatha” is Sanskrit for “forceful,” but poses in this type of yoga are generally gentle and not strenuous.
Hatha yoga uses poses and breathing techniques to help you relax. You can do these at home when you’re feeling sad, or anywhere else your heart desires.
Here are five Hatha poses that are helpful when combatting sadness, which you can perform in a series or on their own:
- Child’s Pose: This one is quite easy. Position yourself with your knees on the floor and your hips resting on top of them (keep your back straight). When you’re ready, completely relax as much as you can; don’t hold any tension in your body parts—especially not your neck or shoulders! Breathe slowly in through the nostrils and out through the mouth 10 times. This will help calm your mind.
- Downward Facing Dog: Get into downward dog by starting with all fours (on hands and knees), then lift up onto tiptoes so that only toes touch ground; keep legs straight while pushing butt backwards until it touches heels behind ankles. Hold position while taking deep breaths in through nose/out through mouth 10 times again before releasing back down on all fours again gently—don’t rush it as they say “slow is smooth & smooth is fast!”.
10-Minute Balance Routine
Walking heel-to-toe has been shown to reduce feelings of sadness by increasing blood flow to the brain. Toe walking has been shown to help with arthritis pain, and can also increase hip range of motion and improve posture. Straight leg raises have been shown to provide psychological benefits by helping to relieve stress, and can help you deal with depression as well. Sit-and-stans are great for improving your balance, coordination and posture.
Conclusion
We hope this article helped you understand the many benefits of exercise, particularly if you are feeling sad.
Exercise will make you feel better because your body releases endorphins when you exercise. Endorphins are your natural happy drug.
When it comes to cardio exercises, brisk walking, jogging or running are great options. If you have access to a swimming pool, swimming is a great option as well. You can also swim in the ocean or at the beach, of course – but be careful and always visit beaches that are supervised by lifeguards!
With regards to strength exercises, push-ups and weight-lifting are an excellent option for upper body strength and toning up your muscles. Are there any fitness centers near your home? Consider joining one so that you can get access to their free weights! Working out with free weights is a very effective way to build muscle strength in your arms and legs, as well as tone up other areas of your body such as abs (stomach), thighs and glutes (buttocks) etc.
If you want more flexible exercises then try some Yoga! There’s no equipment required for Yoga so it won’t cost anything extra either – all you need is a mat or towel on the floor and some loose clothing so that it does not restrict movement during yoga poses/exercises.
