Exercise has so many benefits, and reducing anxiety is one of them. When we’re stressed or worried, we can feel a build up of nervous energy and movement is a really good way of letting all of that energy out and helping you centre yourself.
Sometimes it can take some time to find the best form of exercise for you, some of us like to batter the life out of a kickboxing bag, others of us prefer the peaceful movements of yoga and others just get a kick out of lifting heavy stuff.
Here are some of our favourite celebs on why they exercise, to heal the mind.
Khloe Kardashian
“I promise you, the gym has taken away so much of my stress. It has helped calm me down,” said mammy to be, Khloe in 2015. “When I’m fidgety and I just feel like everything is closing in, I go to the gym. You’re building endorphins and feeling good about yourself. It’s saved me.”
Selena Gomez
“If I don’t work out, I feel heavy,” says Selena. “Everything about me just feels a little bit down. And sometimes I will just run on the treadmill and get emotional because it sort of relieves everything that you’re feeling.”
Gabrielle Union
Gabrielle goes hard when it comes to her gym sessions, saying, “A good boxing workout is the best stress, anxiety, and rage reliever there is, so I definitely look forward to that.”
Demi Lovato
“Exercising is one way I deal with anxiety,” Demi says, “Painting and writing music and expressing myself through art are other ways that I can release emotions.”
Ellie Goulding
Ellie started trying all different types of exercise to help her with panic attacks. She says “The more I started doing classes and also working out with my trainer, the better I felt about myself. And it wasn’t about any change in my outward appearance; it was about seeing and feeling myself get better and stronger. It carried over into other areas of my life, and now I truly feel that exercise — however you like to work out — is good for the soul.”
Lena Dunham
Lena says theres nothing like a good workout to deal with mental health issues. “[I] promised myself I would not let exercise be the first thing to go by the wayside when I got busy with “Girls” Season 5 and here is why: It has helped with my anxiety in ways I never dreamed possible. To those struggling with anxiety, OCD, depression: I know it’s mad annoying when people tell you to exercise, and it took me about 16 medicated years to listen. I’m glad I did. It ain’t about the ass, it’s about the brain.”
