Mental Benefits for Staying Active after Age Analysis

Individuals who exercise and stay active feel better, regardless of their age. Exercising regularly improves not just your own body, but also your mind. Here are five psychological benefits of staying active as you get older:

Reduced Stress

When your body feels excessive stress, it passes aright or flight reaction releasing cortisol into your blood to help deal with your body’s response. However once you experience regular high stress, too much cortisol in your body over time may cause weight gain, hypertension, and headaches. It even raises your risk for specific diseases. Exercise reduces the effects of anxiety and makes you feel better by releasing endorphins that function to counteract the cortisol. This enhances your mood and gives you that post-workout euphoric high.

Prevention of Cognitive Decline

As we age our brains shrink, particularly the hippocampus area which is where memory and learning occurs. But exercising really slows down cognitive loss by boosting the production of new brain cells and these are processed in test for mental age. This helps counter the cells which are naturally dying off. While the best benefit is reaped by exercising between the ages of 25 and 45, exercising at any age is beneficial.

Controlling Addictions

In an effort to reduce excessive stress, we may engage in risky behaviours like smoking and abusing alcohol or prescription drugs. However, while usually intended to be experimental and temporary, their usage can quickly become addiction. That may have serious health effects. As mentioned above, exercising reduces anxiety and so reduces your risk of an abuse turning into an addiction.

Increased Creativity

We all know exercising boosts brain activity. Studies show that exercising can raise your creative capability for up to two hours after exercising. You could use that post exercise period to draw, paint, photograph, write or exercise your creative soul.

Improved Self-Confidence

By exercising not only will you look better with toned muscles, but you will feel better also. Irrespective of weight, sex, age or physical fitness level, exercise lifts your self-esteem and makes you feel great about yourself. And in case you have got a favourable self-image, your radiance will exude to people about you which makes them feel better about them too. Cardio and strength training are two types of exercises which slow down the aging process, but do not overlook yoga. Yoga is a popular among seniors as it is low impact, and easy on the joints.

Additionally, it increases flexibility and improves balance, lowering your risk of falling and breaking a bone. Many seniors overlook the psychological advantages derived from physical exercise. Not only will exercising improve your looks and how you feel about yourself, but it is going to keep your mind sharp also.