Stress--a physical or emotional reaction to life changes--can be either beneficial or harmful depending on the circumstance. Good stress is stress that helps you to overcome major obstacles and challenges. In contrast, bad stress can cause you to break down or to feel discomfort, wearing you out in the long run. To alleviate yourself of continuous, unhealthy stress and to prevent burning out, you should engage in more stress-relieving exercises.
Yoga
Yoga hones in on all the fundamentals of stress reduction--deep breathing, muscle stretching and mental clarity. The Mayo Clinic recommends that beginners looking to reduce stress start off with hatha yoga. Hatha yoga engages students in basic posing styles--holding body positions in various flexible ways--while teaching them how to practice controlled breathing and quieting of the mind. Any temporary relief from the daily strain of life will help to buffer your mental health against the wear and tear of stress.
Breathing Exercises
At times, stress may arrive immediately as a result of a surprise visitor, a sudden traffic jam, the arrival of bad news or the final moments before a big performance. You cannot always improve this form of stress through a yoga session or an intense workout. However, research at Massachusetts General Hospital finds that a combination of deep breathing and counting exercises may help to calm you down quickly. To do this, start from a high number like 10--you can make it higher if you're feeling more stressed--and take a deep breath in through your nose, counting down one number at a time with each exhalation from your mouth. Aim on filling your diaphragm, or lower abdomen, with plenty of oxygen each time you inhale. This exercise will help you slow down your heart rate and refocus your thoughts.
Physical Exercises
A typical workout routine encompasses several stress-reduction exercises all at once. First of all, stretching releases built-up tension that may be causing you to feel on edge. Second, any intense exercise that induces pain also triggers the production of endorphins that act as the body's natural opiate, providing a "feel-good" sensation to counteract discomfort. Most important, exercise teaches you to focus on your body and breathing, tuning out all of your stress-related issues, while at the same time, providing you with a healthy mechanism with which you can direct your frustrations. Most experts recommend you try to get in about 30 minutes of exercise, or physical activity, a day.
