Mind Games

Mind over matter, this common phrase is something that can apply to so many aspects of our lives. When it comes to fitness our mindset plays a huge role. We train not only our physical strength but our mental strength as well. Every time you say “I hate the strider” and then crush it anyway, you are overcoming your own doubt and accomplishing a goal. How does this apply to life outside the gym? We often face tasks that are less than desirable and your ability to overcome the undesirable tasks in the gym help establish the ability to overcome the undesirable tasks elsewhere. Once you set your mind to a task, enjoyable or not, you know you have the strength to accomplish it. When you push through that final round of exercises despite your fatigue, you are creating a confidence to push through struggle. All of these things are great for us physically but the mental toughness we develop through exercise is not to be underestimated! Sometimes the hardest part of working out is finding the motivation to make it to the gym. Once that happens and the workout begins we suddenly feel the benefits of exercise on our mood and our bodies. The mood boost that we receive from exercising will carry throughout the rest of our day. Having a positive mindset from a good workout will carry over into a positive attitude at work, school and wherever your day takes you! Exercise has been proven to help reduce immediate stress and better handle stress that is encountered. The physical stress applied to the body puts us through the same stress response that mental stress does. Exercise teaches our body how to accept and dismiss the stressors. All of these positive factors on our mental strength will help with exercise adherence as well. Once you start enjoying exercise and feeling the benefits intrinsically your will be more likely to adhere to your exercise plan. Our bodies need a balance of physical, mental and spiritual well-being and exercise helps provide a healthy body and a healthy mind!