There's no doubt about it. Exercise changes my mood dramatically.
Where I'm living, it has been raining for days. Everything is damp, I can't even remember what the sun looks like, and many others have it worse – they are flooded in.
I, like many others that I have spoken to recently, find this weather progressively uninspiring the longer it goes on. I don't mind a few days of rain, don't get me wrong. In fact, I relish in it. But when it goes on for weeks, mood-wise, I can start to feel a little flat.
I start to sleep in a little longer. I spend more time sitting down, and less time walking around outside, and in general I feel more sluggish and restless. I have had a saving grace, however. And this has been my local gym.
Take this morning, for example. I woke up – another grey day outside with some drizzly rain. As I was having my morning cuppa, I reflected on what I hoped to achieve for the day work-wise. My brain felt quite fuzzy, and although I was prepared to plod through the tasks at hand, I was not feeling dramatically inspired. And then, I had a thought. Perhaps a morning trip to the gym was in order to get my creative fire burning.
So, off I went for a one hour aerobics style fitness class. I jumped around, laughed, interacted with others, had a change of environment (that was dry and welcoming), burnt calories and improved my fitness and overall health at the same time.
What prompted me to write this blog was the notable difference post exercise in my attitude to the day and my tasks at hand. The exercise class significantly changed how I felt physically, mentally and emotionally. I had more energy. I had a sense of achievement at having done something good for my health. The sluggishness and restlessness had totally gone, and the crème de la crème for me was that I felt much more motivated and happier!
Now if that is not enough reason to get out there and exercise, then I don't know what is! Don't think about it, just do it! See you at the gym!
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