How to exercise to look after your mind
It’s been found that three sessions of exercise a week can boost levels of a chemical in the brain which is essential for a sound and relaxed mind.
The chemical is GABA, gamma-amino butyric acid. It’s an amino acid that’s essential for the functioning of the brain and the central nervous system, it basically helps to promote a state of calm within the body.
Low GABA levels are associated with depression and other anxiety disorders.
Yoga and GABA scientific discovery
But, interestingly, studies from scientists at Boston University found that the levels of the amino acid, GABA are much higher in those that carry out yoga than those who do the equivalent of a similarly strenuous exercise, such as walking.
This study made me think, and I took a look back over my experience as a dancer, yoga teacher, shiatsu and craniosacral practitioner.
I thought, ’If you asked yourself how does exercise affect your mind, would you change how you work out?”
Each time you move, you affect your mind, yet each type of exercise stimulates the mind in different ways.
So, what does what?
If you want to feel fresh, relaxed and reduce stress
Look for exercises that are slower, where fluidity is encouraged, and where there is awareness on the breath. Yoga, Thai chi, qui gong, Feldenkrais and Alexander Technique are all wonderful for the mind.
If you’d like to deeply relax and recharged
Take up slow yoga, like yin yoga or yoga nidra. These old practices guide the nervous system out of a “flight or fright” state and encourage a sense of ease both physically in the body and in the mind. This will take care of your mind in the long run.
If you’d like to focus solely on the mind
Learn Pranayama, and teach yourself how to breath properly. Your nervous system is directly related to your breath, so changing your breath will have a direct impact on how you feel. Research shows that each time you inhale, your heart rate speeds up, and as you exhale it slows down. So, a quick way to relax is to lengthen your out breath.
My first yoga teacher was an ex coal miner whose lungs were 70% full of coal dust. He swore he kept himself alive by learning and practicing Pranayama. A walking inspiration.
If you’d like to improve your ability to focus
Take up meditation, or mindfulness, it can help you balance all your responsibilities and activities that seem overwhelming. The goal of mindfulness is to not stop being distracted, but to gently and efficiently bring thought back to the present.
If you’d like to lift your spirits
Take up dance. Dance was my first love and If you want to feel fresh, alert and happy then take up any dance form, co-ordinating your steps, moving your body through space does wonders for your mind and spirit.
Want to be more social?
Take up group sports such as football, hockey, tennis, anything that involves hand /foot/ eye coordination. It should be noted that any cardio will quickly change the brain. It’ll both oxygenate the brain and stimulate the body, flooding your body with endorphins, making you feel clearer and energised.
Awareness is growing here in the West
It’s interesting how MRI scanners are confirming so much of what the east has said for years. In my practice in the city, over the last 20 years, I’ve worked with mums, pen pushers, high flying execs, start-up companies from fashion to gaming, and everyone is becoming more aware of the beauty of not solely looking after the body, but looking after the mind too.
Things are changing, the pressures in people’s lives are great and we need a broad palate when it comes to helping the body and the mind. So, do take up that Pranayama, go to that yoga nidra class, create space in your mind, and encourage yourself to think creatively, right out of the box.
Keep it fresh and reach for the sky.