If you’re feeling like your work-life balance is out of whack, here’s what recent research suggests you should do: drop whatever you’re doing, be it paperwork or household chores, and go exercise.
While it may seem counterintuitive to add another task to your to-do list, the research suggests that exercise can give you the confidence you need to accomplish even the most difficult tasks at work and home.
Researchers from several universities, including Saint Leo University in Florida, surveyed 476 working adults about their exercise behaviors and their level of confidence in handling family-work conflicts. The results, discussed on the Office of Women’s Health website, revealed that adults who exercised were more confident in their ability to tackle tough task at both home and at work.
While this most recent research, which will be published in the upcoming journal Human Resource Management, suggests a link between exercise and the ability to manage work-life balance, it doesn’t show a cause-and-effect relationship. The researcher’s findings are supported however by a wide body of research showing that exercise helps lower both physical and mental stress levels.
In fact, exercise can be so effective in lowering stress levels that The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) encourages people with both anxiety disorders and depressed moods to exercise – not for physical health, but for mental wellbeing.
The ADAA notes that even just a ten-minute walk can elevate a person’s mood for several hours. Studies dating back to 1981 have found that regular exercise can work just as well in relieving anxiety and depression symptoms as medication.
There are several theories on why exercise may help boost mood and relieve stress levels. One theory revolves around the fact that exercise elevates endorphin levels in the body. Science knows that endorphins improve natural immunity and reduce pain perception – researchers think that they may also improve mood. Or, exercise may stimulate a neurotransmitter that directly elevates mood.
In addition to elevated mood levels, and a possible boost in managing your work-life balance, exercise is known to have a slew of other health benefits, including reducing the risk of:
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cancer
- Falls and Bone Fractures
- Arthritis Symptoms
If you’re stressed out and not exercising, learning another reason why you ought to be exercising may feel overwhelming instead of empowering. But, as mentioned above, research continues to suggest that any amount of physical activity can begin to reap benefits.
Ideally, you should work to get in at least two and a half hours of moderate physical activity a week, but just getting up for a quick walk or a round of jumping jacks is a good place to start.
Physicians, nurses and staff at Gainesville’s All About Women encourages all women to find ways to add physical activity into their day. Not only does exercise improve your mood and stress levels, it’s also one of the best preventive measures women can take for their health – https://www.allaboutwomenmd.com/preventive-care-services/.
Even if you’re pregnant, thinking about becoming pregnant, or you’ve just had a baby, our competent team of doctors and midwives can help you set realistic expectations and exercise goals in every stage of life.
