Not into Meditation and Yoga? Here are 5 Other Ways to Fight Stress
Stress is one of the biggest obstacles to achieving our goals in life! When it comes to our workouts the stress hormone Cortisol will kill our muscle gains in the gym. When we are stressed we also tend to have a poorer sense of satiety. We reach for our comfort foods and put ourselves into a tremendous caloric surplus without even realizing it, causing us to gain weight. Finally when it comes to our mental health, a healthy amount of stress just like exercise can be good for pushing us out of our comfort zone. However, when it becomes chronic and uncontrolled it leads us to feeling burned out and unhappy which needless to say has negative carryover effects to our physical health.
One of the most recommended methods of dealing with stress is to do yoga or meditate on an almost daily basis. This is great for helping us slow down, gather our thoughts, and be better in tune with our mind and body. And the results speak for themselves! Both research and tons of testimonials confirm the effectiveness of yoga and meditation so much so that it has almost become the go to non-medical treatment for all stress and anxiety issues. However, that is certainly not a be all end all solution.
There are Many Other Healthy Means of combating Stress and Anxiety, and Here are a Few of Them that You can Use.
1. Exercise or not, go for a walk every day.
While strength training is important for building muscles mass, increasing metabolism, and protecting our joints from injury, walking has benefits for other reasons. It is a low impact, low intensity activity that produces endorphins that make us feel more relaxed and it does so without making most of us substantially fatigued like with more intense forms of exercise. Walking outdoors specifically has even more benefits. Getting exposure to the sun helps our body produce Vitamin D, an essential nutrient. And most important of all, we get time to gather our thoughts and emotions without distractions. Just like walking itself, hearing sounds of nature whether it is water running, birds chirping, or the wind also produces endorphins that help alleviate some of the adrenalin we might be feeling.
2. Take a Warm Shower (with a Dose of Cold Water at the End)
Similarly to a walk or light workout, a warm shower relaxes us. The heat makes our brain release oxytocin which has anti-anxiety effects. The sound of running water and the distraction free personal space certainly helps as well. This is another reason why a relaxing shower can also be good after an intense workout because our muscles don’t get stronger from the workout itself but rather during the recovery process. That is why getting rest after a workout is so important! The one downside to showering especially with hot water is that it can lead to dry skin. To help offset that try using natural oil based soaps and making the shower colder particularly closer to the end. A cold shower, even if only briefly can also boost our energy levels and our immune system.
3. Dedicate at least 2-3 hours a week to socialize (if you are an extrovert) or 2-3 hours to yourself (if you are an introvert)
Are you an introvert or an extravert? Most of us are going to be a mix of both so be honest with yourself on this one. It is commonly said that social circles help with anxiety. That is true for the most part; However, it comes with diminishing returns. Too much forced socialization for some of us can actually have the opposite effect by giving us too much anxiety from the pressure to fit in. Don’t feel forced to do certain activities just out of peer pressure. What’s important for all of us is that we dedicate time for ourselves to do the things we like to do. You can’t be the best version of yourself to your friends, family, and co-workers if you don’t take care of yourself first. As the airlines say, “Place the oxygen mask over your nose and mouth before assisting a child or another person.” But in all seriousness, whether it’s reading, socializing, playing sports, or anything else take time for yourself. An investment in yourself always pays off!
4. Everyday write down 3 goals and 3 things you are grateful for
Often times we get stressed because we are disorganized and doing too much at once. Even when you have a busy schedule, write down your goals and priorities and simplify your life! You might even realize how unimportant some of what you are stressing about is, and how much time you might be wasting on unimportant things. Going for that walk, taking that shower, having that alone time is important for this very reason.
If someone told you today that they can give you 10 million dollars how would that change your life? You would probably be ecstatic thinking it’s great! I don’t have to work this job I don’t like, don’t need to worry about that rent or mortgage anymore, etc.! But then, what if they told you that in exchange for that money you will either go blind or spend the rest of your life in a wheel chair? Almost any person who is lucky not to have those problems would say of course I wouldn’t choose to be blind or disabled for that or really any amount of money. You have just told yourself that you value your vision and your legs more than that Fancy House, Fancy Car, and Gourmet Dinner out. So work hard and dream big but also be grateful, and notice how your mood changes!
5. Take a Break from Social Media and Reality TV
Of course it is easy to get stressed out when you are constantly finding yourself comparing your life to others. Well our advice to you is to live your own life and follow your own dreams! Sure get ideas of what you might like if you must, but don’t waste your time watching others live their dream while you are not making progress on yours. Social Media and Reality TV also don’t paint a full picture of people’s lives. Everyone has hardships, everyone has bad days. With modern social media it can easily feel like everyone is having fun but you. Don’t fall into that trap, the one person you are competing with is yourself! You will instantly see your stress levels fall if you simplify your life and just tell yourself that “I’m going to be a better person today than I was yesterday!” That’s it! You can read more about how social media affects our health in another one of our articles, How Social Media can Harm our Health!
And that’s 5 ways we can cope with stress without doing any yoga or meditation! For more articles and videos please continue following our website. We greatly appreciate you being here and hope that this article gives you ways to make your day, week, or even your life just a little better! Take care and Stay Healthy!
Leo Gabriel, Revivalize Inc.
Sources:
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3193654/
[2] https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/a-20-minute-nature-break-relieves-stress
[3] https://health.clevelandclinic.org/are-cold-showers-good-for-you/
Go Back One of the most recommended methods of dealing with stress is to do yoga or meditate on an almost daily basis. This is great for helping us slow down, gather our thoughts, and be better in tune with our mind and body. And the results speak for themselves! Both research and tons of testimonials confirm the effectiveness of yoga and meditation so much so that it has almost become the go to non-medical treatment for all stress and anxiety issues. However, that is certainly not a be all end all solution.
There are Many Other Healthy Means of combating Stress and Anxiety, and Here are a Few of Them that You can Use.
1. Exercise or not, go for a walk every day.
While strength training is important for building muscles mass, increasing metabolism, and protecting our joints from injury, walking has benefits for other reasons. It is a low impact, low intensity activity that produces endorphins that make us feel more relaxed and it does so without making most of us substantially fatigued like with more intense forms of exercise. Walking outdoors specifically has even more benefits. Getting exposure to the sun helps our body produce Vitamin D, an essential nutrient. And most important of all, we get time to gather our thoughts and emotions without distractions. Just like walking itself, hearing sounds of nature whether it is water running, birds chirping, or the wind also produces endorphins that help alleviate some of the adrenalin we might be feeling.
2. Take a Warm Shower (with a Dose of Cold Water at the End)
Similarly to a walk or light workout, a warm shower relaxes us. The heat makes our brain release oxytocin which has anti-anxiety effects. The sound of running water and the distraction free personal space certainly helps as well. This is another reason why a relaxing shower can also be good after an intense workout because our muscles don’t get stronger from the workout itself but rather during the recovery process. That is why getting rest after a workout is so important! The one downside to showering especially with hot water is that it can lead to dry skin. To help offset that try using natural oil based soaps and making the shower colder particularly closer to the end. A cold shower, even if only briefly can also boost our energy levels and our immune system.
3. Dedicate at least 2-3 hours a week to socialize (if you are an extrovert) or 2-3 hours to yourself (if you are an introvert)
Are you an introvert or an extravert? Most of us are going to be a mix of both so be honest with yourself on this one. It is commonly said that social circles help with anxiety. That is true for the most part; However, it comes with diminishing returns. Too much forced socialization for some of us can actually have the opposite effect by giving us too much anxiety from the pressure to fit in. Don’t feel forced to do certain activities just out of peer pressure. What’s important for all of us is that we dedicate time for ourselves to do the things we like to do. You can’t be the best version of yourself to your friends, family, and co-workers if you don’t take care of yourself first. As the airlines say, “Place the oxygen mask over your nose and mouth before assisting a child or another person.” But in all seriousness, whether it’s reading, socializing, playing sports, or anything else take time for yourself. An investment in yourself always pays off!
4. Everyday write down 3 goals and 3 things you are grateful for
Often times we get stressed because we are disorganized and doing too much at once. Even when you have a busy schedule, write down your goals and priorities and simplify your life! You might even realize how unimportant some of what you are stressing about is, and how much time you might be wasting on unimportant things. Going for that walk, taking that shower, having that alone time is important for this very reason.
If someone told you today that they can give you 10 million dollars how would that change your life? You would probably be ecstatic thinking it’s great! I don’t have to work this job I don’t like, don’t need to worry about that rent or mortgage anymore, etc.! But then, what if they told you that in exchange for that money you will either go blind or spend the rest of your life in a wheel chair? Almost any person who is lucky not to have those problems would say of course I wouldn’t choose to be blind or disabled for that or really any amount of money. You have just told yourself that you value your vision and your legs more than that Fancy House, Fancy Car, and Gourmet Dinner out. So work hard and dream big but also be grateful, and notice how your mood changes!
5. Take a Break from Social Media and Reality TV
Of course it is easy to get stressed out when you are constantly finding yourself comparing your life to others. Well our advice to you is to live your own life and follow your own dreams! Sure get ideas of what you might like if you must, but don’t waste your time watching others live their dream while you are not making progress on yours. Social Media and Reality TV also don’t paint a full picture of people’s lives. Everyone has hardships, everyone has bad days. With modern social media it can easily feel like everyone is having fun but you. Don’t fall into that trap, the one person you are competing with is yourself! You will instantly see your stress levels fall if you simplify your life and just tell yourself that “I’m going to be a better person today than I was yesterday!” That’s it! You can read more about how social media affects our health in another one of our articles, How Social Media can Harm our Health!
And that’s 5 ways we can cope with stress without doing any yoga or meditation! For more articles and videos please continue following our website. We greatly appreciate you being here and hope that this article gives you ways to make your day, week, or even your life just a little better! Take care and Stay Healthy!
Leo Gabriel, Revivalize Inc.
Sources:
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3193654/
[2] https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/a-20-minute-nature-break-relieves-stress
[3] https://health.clevelandclinic.org/are-cold-showers-good-for-you/