One of the biggest battles we face everyday is our own mind. This battle transcends gender, political affiliation, the old, the young, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, military, civilian, pretty much everything is what I am getting at!! This battle starts from the moment you start waking up, even before you open your eyes to welcome the morning. Because, maybe, just maybe, you don’t want to wake up and great the day? Or maybe you don’t want to go to work? Maybe life just sucks? It’s hard, people are cruel, no one knows how to drive, ya just don’t want to deal with any of it? Maybe your relationship isn’t what you thought it would be? Maybe some of this resonates and you, my friend, may be fighting being depressed?! And depression is a battle that we all face from time to time.
Did you know that according to a quick Google search and with plenty of link the conclusion shows that January is the most depressing month and January 24th is the most depressing day of the year? Part of the reason that January is depressing has to be with the lack of natural Vitamin D being absorbed into the body. Since, ya know, winter and all. It’s cold and you want it to be warm. Or if you’re from the Midwest you just want the weather to have the decency to be consistent for at least one week at a time. Then there is always the fact that you survived the crazy holidays and are excited for the new year. You make a resolution, start it, but right about this point in the month you start to falter. You start telling yourself that you have the whole year to complete this goal so its okay if you mess up now. BUT… then again that’s exactly what I said last year and I ended up throwing out my entire New Years Resolution because I didn’t truly make it realistic and stick to it. And then, of course, turns into self-doubt and depression. Telling yourself things like “what’s the point? I’m not going to complete the goal anyways so why even bother?”
All of this negative self-talk and depression can be alleviated by a structured training regimen.
Now, disclaimer, if you are clinically depressed and on medicine for it, I am not telling you to quit your meds and only workout to get better. What I will say is, consult your doctor because it is a proven fact that by training in a structured program in conjunction with your meds that positive results are more prevalent. For everyone else that has mild to medium levels of depression, training in a structured program will definitely positively affect your mood in a better direction. Exercise in a structured setting leads to the release of your ‘feel-good’ endorphins and for you to take your mind off your worries while focusing on your exercises. The endorphins help change the balance of your brain so that you can enhance your sense of happiness or well-being. Exercise can help you gain confidence, have more positive social interactions, and cope with life in a healthy manner. Confidence helps combat depression because you get to focus on the positive goals or challenges that you have completed, even if it’s a very little one.
So go out,combat the most depressing month of January and exercise to fight to be happy! You deserve it!