Our Favorite Stress Relieving Exercises
We all know we’re supposed to exercise for our physical health, but sometimes we forget that exercise relieves stress so we need to do it for our soul as well. There are so many great stress relieving exercises!
Even though we need it, it doesn’t mean we always love it. It can still be hard motivating yourself to exercise some days…some days more than others.
This year has been tough and super stressful, and it’s especially important that we stay physically healthy, so do your best to keep up with the exercise.
Symptoms of Stress
Stress feels BAD. High stress often manifests in physical symptoms, which compounds its negative impact.
Let’s take a quick look at the most common symptoms of stress:
- Muscle tension
- Headaches
- Neck and back pain
- Dry mouth
- Clenched jaw muscles and jaw pain
- Excess sweat
- Fatigue
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Lightheadedness
- Stomach cramps and GI distress
These are some of the many outward ways stress rears its ugly head. Clearly, stress is not healthy for your body, so you want to do what you can to relieve it.
Exercise for Stress Reduction
It’s science and it’s REAL—exercise reduces stress by reducing your body’s stress hormones (cortisol and adrenaline).
At the same time, exercise produces endorphins, which are the body’s natural mood elevators and painkillers.
Have you ever heard of “Runner’s High?” It’s the optimism and relaxation that come from a good workout, such as a long run. And, it’s very real.
Exercising on a regular basis gets you feeling better and looking better, which also boosts your self-image. This all works to relieve stress and reduce anxiety giving you an overall general feeling of wellbeing.
I think we could ALL use a little anxiety reduction and a feeling of wellbeing right now.
Mental Workouts for Stress Reduction
Mental workouts coupled with physical workouts are an excellent combination for relieving stress.
Here are some examples of mental workouts:
- Deep breathing exercises
- Meditation
- Journaling
- Progressive muscular relaxation exercises
Best Workouts for Stress Reduction
Running isn’t the only workout that gives your a post-workout, stress-relieving “high.”
There are lots of stress relieving workouts; even beginning exercisers have a lot to look forward to when it comes to stress reduction.
1. Yoga — Easy on the Body and Great for the Mind
Yoga is fabulous for stress reduction, which is why we absolutely love Beachbody’s 3 Week Yoga Retreat.
This 21 day program is included in the Beachbody On Demand membership and comes with a Quickstart Guide, nutrition guide for optimized results, a class calendar with an easy-to-follow schedule, and a pose tracker so you can track your progress with key yoga poses through “before” and “after” photos.
Don’t worry if you’re never done yoga. Foundation Week 1 gets you started with all the poses you’ll need to know—from Downward Dog to balance and squat positions.
You’ll expand your knowledge in Week 2 and progress in Week 3.
Don’t miss out on this great yoga retreat—or the entire yoga section on Beachbody on Demand!
RELATED | 10 Spiritual & Mental Health Benefits of Yoga
2. Unstress — * NEW * 21 Days of Meditation
Beachbody on Demand has another fantastic new program for stress relief—it’s called Unstress and it’s 21 days of guided meditation.
*** This program was added to BOD without any paid VIP Early Access fee—meaning that it's totally free for all existing members. We love that Beachbody is continuing to up the value of BOD without increasing the price! 👏 ***
This program will help you transition from running through your days feeling anxious and stressed to gliding through them feeling calm and in control.
This great new Beachbody class features a Getting Started video with instruction from top meditation instructors from the popular Unplug app, as well as a 21-day daily meditation calendar.
Do you feel like you’re too busy to meditate? Believe me when I say that once you get started on some simple meditating, you’ll love it!
It only takes 10 minutes a day. The result of this tiny investment will be a more relaxed, more calm you.
Best Stress Relieving Exercises for Beginners
Are you worried that Beachbody on Demand is too hard for you? I want to put this worry to rest.
Beachbody on Demand is for EVERYBODY!
There are SO many programs you can choose from—even if you’ve never exercised a day in your life. Here are our favorite programs for beginners that will do the job on relieving stress:
What starts to happen after you get started is that the more you exercise, the more you’ll want to exercise more!
Stress Relieving Exercises for a Better You!
Self-care is SO important, and stress relieving exercises help you feel better, reduce anxiety, and lead to a calmer, happier you.
If you want to be there for your family, friends, and significant other, you’ve got to be there for yourself first.
RELATED | Treat Yo'Self! Coach Monica's Self Care Checklist
Don't Forget Good Nutrition!
Good nutrition is also a big part of stress reduction. You simply can't out-exercise a bad diet. If you’re not eating well, you won’t feel as good as you can, which contributes to stress.
Beachbody has two fabulous eating plans—Autumn Calabrese’s Ultimate Portion Fix and Illana Muhlstein's 2B Mindset.
One of these plans will be an excellent solution for you, so you have one less thing to stress about!
Free Coaching Program
Studies show that those who work with a coach or accountability partner are FAR more likely to reach their goals when it comes to health and fitness.
All of the programs I mentioned above includes coaching and accountability, so please take advantage of it!
Coach Monica or I (Coach Dave) can help you choose the best Beachbody programs that’ll work great for YOU and start you on the path toward a calmer and healthier lifestyle.
Click below and we’ll get you started on the process:
