Combining mindfulness with exercise could be the key to managing stress during a potentially turbulent 2024, a new review argues.
Results from 35 studies involving over 2,200 participants show that those who exercise and practice mindfulness meditation are more likely to have lower levels of worry, stress, anxiety, and depression than those who simply do one or the other.
According to lead researcher Masha Remskar, a doctoral student in psychology at the University of Bath in England, mindfulness meditation, which focuses on being in the moment, can motivate people and help them see past the fleeting discomfort that comes with working out, making it easier for people to embrace exercise.
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News release
“Mindfulness is an approach that can help us ‘train up’ the psychological strengths we need to exercise and be more in tune with our bodies, as well as make exercising more interesting and help us recognize its benefits,” Remskar said in a university news release.
“This may be because becoming more mindful prompts us to think differently about our lifestyle and makes us more accepting and less judgmental of our own shortcomings, which can help to build healthy habits,” she added. “There is a huge potential to use mindfulness to unlock the positive benefits exercise can bring.” Exercise and mindfulness have been linked separately to improved mental health, but this is one of the first major reviews to show how benefits might be increased when the two are combined, the researchers said.
Evidence
For the evidence review, Remskar and her colleagues scoured research journals for prior studies that combined physical activity and mindfulness meditation as a means of improving well-being. The combination effectively reduced depression, anxiety and stress in participants compared with control groups who did neither meditation nor exercise and also showed promise compared to groups asked to solely work out or meditate, the review found.
Based on the findings, Remskar’s group collaborated with the nonprofit Medito Foundation to develop a free audio course on mindfulness intended to encourage individuals to start exercising on a regular basis. They intend to publish a second handbook on maintaining an exercise routine later this year.
Researchers
“Mobile apps that promote mindfulness are a fantastic method to improve our mental health,” stated Steven Yorke, Medito’s co-founder. Sadly, paywalls are frequently installed by businesses, preventing some people from accessing the advantages of mindfulness, according to Yorke. At Medito, we think that mindfulness and meditation ought to be freely accessible to everyone, everywhere, at all times. For this reason, Medito, our mindfulness app, is and will always be free.The researchers are also planning their own large clinical trial to further explore the combination of mindfulness and exercise.
Frequently asked questions
How to practice mindfulness
Meditation is one of the easiest techniques to cultivate mindfulness. It’s not as hard as you may assume. According to Dr. Sukol, “everyone believes you have to commit to meditation for 10, 15, or 20 minutes.” “However, I usually advise beginning with a one-minute meditation.”
Where you do this one-minute meditation varies, and there’s no right or wrong place to practice as long as it’s relatively quiet and you’re unlikely to be disturbed. “I suggest that people consider meditating when they get to work or when they reach their first destination of the day,” says Dr. Sukol. “Once you park, if you’re in your car, you can drop your keys in your lap and then close your eyes.”
The next steps are simple: Breathe in for five seconds, and then breathe out for five seconds. “That’s your warm-up,” says Dr. Sukol. “Now do that five more times. That’s it. That’s a one-minute meditation. When offered this option, most of my patients say, ‘I could do that.’”
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Disclaimer: The opinions and suggestions expressed in this article are solely those of the individual analysts. These are not the opinions of HNN. For more, please consult with your doctor
