Season 2, Episode 8: How Exercise Shapes Your Well-Being
Ever notice how after a workout, you feel better, calmer, happier, and more relaxed? That’s because physical activity plays a crucial role in your mental health. Engaging in regular exercise of any form, it doesn’t need to be strenuous, and you don’t need to get an expensive gym membership, releases “feel-good” chemicals like endorphins, serotonin, and dopamine, elevating your mood and reducing stress. Additionally, exercise helps you process your emotions and fosters a sense of accomplishment, boosting your self-confidence and promoting mindfulness.
On this episode of Living Fully, our host Katherine Hurtig talks with registered social worker Stephanie Warner about the impact exercise can have on our mental health, and strategies for incorporating it into our daily lives.
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Katherine Hurtig
Welcome to Living Fully, a podcast dedicated to enhancing your mental well-being. Each episode explores valuable insights and practical strategies to help you lead a more fulfilling life. I'm your host, Katherine Hurtig.
Ever notice how after a workout, you just feel better, calmer, happier, and more relaxed? In today's episode, we delve into the big impact that exercise can have on our mental health and strategies to incorporate it into our daily lives. I talked with registered social worker Stephanie Warner about the relationship between physical and mental well-being.
Thank you for being here today with me Stephanie.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah, no problem. Thanks for inviting me, and I'm excited to be here.
Katherine Hurtig
How does physical activity and exercise, how does it and in what ways does it play a role in our mental health?
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. So I think it's really important for us to acknowledge and to notice that activity is part of what we are designed to do, right? We are meant to move our bodies. We're meant to be walking around standing, you know, doing things with our bodies. And it is a way to allow us to process experiences, to shift our physiology, to create something different within ourselves. And for so many of us, we're sitting at desks all day or we're, you know, in sedentary positions and it doesn't allow our body to move and move through things in its natural cycles. So being sure to incorporate exercise is so important for our mental health because it is one of those keystone habits. It is one of those really important pieces on which all of our other habits and routines are built on. And so kind of, along with nutrition and sleep, these things really make up some of the most important things that impact our overall well-being and exercise allows us to move through experiences, right and it allows us to have opportunities to show ourselves that we can do things to commit to things. To build routines to see tangible progress and improvement and those kinds of outcomes can have very big impacts on our mental health.
Katherine Hurtig
It's interesting - the more I learn about mental health, the more I'm fascinated at how those basics about our physical health like sleep, exercise and food. Going back to those basics is so important and can affect everything.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah they really do. And I think we don't often slow down enough to be able to say, do I have my basic needs in place? Right. If we think about the hierarchy of needs - am able to move my body? Do I feel like I have the capacity to be active? Am I eating enough? Am I eating well? You know, do I have access to nutrients? Do I have good sleep? And food and nutrition will no doubt it impact your sleep. And then they all sort of go together in a cycle, right? You have bad sleep. You don't want to work out, which means you don't want to eat well and it all sort of feeds into each other. So it's kind of like this really important little triangle to address early on.
Katherine Hurtig
And then, like, they affect each other in good ways too. Like I find with myself, if I'm exercising more, I want to eat better, I want to be able to perform better and then that affects sleep too, and sleep better. Yeah. OK. So we know that movement is important for our mental health. So what do we need to do? What's the minimum amount that we need to commit? What kind of? Like do we need to be consistent? What does that look like?
Stephanie Warner
You know I think that it's really like a ladder. You have to start somewhere safe and comfortable and build a strong base before you can move up to the next step.
Katherine Hurtig
Makes sense.
Stephanie Warner
And so I always talk to people about, you know, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. You can start wherever you're at with whatever amount of time that you have, and you can build up to whatever your capacity is, because it's one of those feedback loops, right, you start, you say, are consistent every day for 10 minutes a day. And then maybe you're like, oh, I'm seeing good results. I'm going to keep doing that. Maybe I'm going to give it 15. Yeah, and then maybe 20. Right. And I think the most important thing is actually taking time to set aside for yourself, which is hard for a lot of people to do. We live in a really fast-paced society that doesn't value rest or self-care. And so being able to say. I can take this time for myself to focus on myself can be challenging, but I think more than an amount of time. Like obviously we have our standards that they are recommended by the government and wellness officials. But we also have to look at what is realistic and what somebody's capacity is. So I think you know, it's one of those situations where a little bit is better than nothing. And as you become more able, more capable, more confident, the more you can do.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, I think that's a really important thing to remember that something is better than nothing. I think people starting an exercise program or wanting to get in shape or wanting to just put more of that into their routine. It can feel overwhelming if you think you need to do half an hour every day.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. And I think you know a lot of times, that's really related to the fear of the unknown. I don't know what I'm going to get out of this, but I have to give it everything to get something. I have to have the best shoes, I have to have fancy equipment, but you know the truth is you, you don't right? Exercise activity is something that's accessible. We could go for a walk. That's active. That is engaging in your physical health, right? Whether it's running or Zumba or whatever it is, we can do these things on our own and there are lots of resources that give us those opportunities to be able to access things that we might not have normally. Which I think is great.
Katherine Hurtig
And I was talking a little while ago to one of our other counsellors about this topic, and she was saying even if you don't have the ability to walk, even any kind of movement is beneficial.
Stephanie Warner
Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, there's all kinds of cool things out there. There's chair yoga, there are different ways to do things, you can use your wall for exercises. There’s all kinds of different things that you could do from your bed, right? And so it's about meeting yourself where you're at and not having this idea of what is perfect, right? You don't have to run a marathon to be a runner, right? You can be a runner and run down the block. That's great.
Katherine Hurtig
I'll probably bring this up a lot in this episode, but like, yeah, I relate so much to what you're saying there because like, I got into running over the past couple of years ago and I just absolutely love it. I mean, it's great for physical health, but more than anything it's taught me a lot about my mental health. You made a point earlier about how it can show you what you're capable of and it's totally done that. Like, it's showing me like, hey, I can, I can do something hard. I can, you know, run 20 kilometres and like knowing that is about yourself is pretty cool.
Stephanie Warner
And you know, I think another great thing about that is there are so many other skills and internal resources that we have to draw on to be able to do that, right? And so sometimes physical health or this idea of exercise isn't simply about the activity itself or getting good at something. It's also about all the other things that we develop in our self – consistency, self-trust, reliability, being accountable to our goals, managing our time, dedicating ourselves to something. And so, you have this idea, and this is what running was like for me. I'm going to do couch to 5K. Yeah, right. I'm pretty active. I feel like I could do it, but I'm going to commit myself to this particular thing, even if I could do more, or maybe I don't think I could do more, I'm going to commit to this program because it's important to me to do it properly, and to do it safely and to get to the place that I would eventually like to be. And so it gives you all of these other skills and it gives you a community which is also really important.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah. That's a really good way to look at it. It just goes way beyond your physical health. Yeah, I love what you're saying there, it's teaching you these other skills.
Stephanie Warner
And probably things you already had in you, but maybe didn't realize were there. Right? And so when you incorporate this idea of exercise into your mental health plan or your care and sometimes we need to think about taking the idea of mental health out of health, right? It is just health. Yes, it is our brain. Yes, it is the way we cognitively think about things or the way we feel about things. But it is still a part of our overall health.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, and not separating the two at all. Like they're not distinct.
Stephanie Warner
Being able to incorporate that also helps us build confidence in our skills and abilities which shows in all kinds of areas in our lives, in our relationships and in our work. In our ability to go and say, hey, I'm going to do this next thing or this is my next step or this is my goal to talk about those things with people.
Katherine Hurtig
So, Stephanie, are there specific types of exercises or movements that are better than others for mental health?
Stephanie Warner
I wouldn't say better. I think it really depends on the individual and what they are looking for. I have found that for people who are maybe dealing with a lot of anxiety or dealing with a lot of anger, things like weight lifting can be good because it's a tough job, right? To be able to lift weight, to move heavy things around, to push yourself in that way, that it can allow you to process those kinds of things. And then there's somethings like yoga, which are entirely different, entirely different skills, entirely different muscle movements. But allow us to slow down and focus on each movement and allow us to get in touch with ourselves and our inner connection. And so I don't know that it's like one thing is better than the other. I think it's what feels good for each person
Katherine Hurtig
Totally. And they kind of serving different purposes.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah and I mean, like, I think about my own experience with exercise and I definitely ebb and flow. There are times in my life where I run a lot and there are times in my life where I do a lot of yoga and there are times in my life where I lift weights a lot or you know, or where I just am walking a lot and it just really varies based on where I’m at.
Katherine Hurtig
What do you need at that time? Yeah I relate.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. And I think the great thing about exercise is it's always something you can come back to. It can always be home, right? It's not judgmental. It's not here to say you stopped running. Yeah. It's here to say OK, like. Great. Let's just back up again. Yeah, let's go. Yeah, right.
Katherine Hurtig
How does exercise influence stress? Like, how does it help to reduce stress? And you know, what kind of advice do you give to clients who might be looking to manage their stress through physical activity?
Stephanie Warner
This is a really good question because I think that it is so important to understand the science of activity. Yeah, right. So it helps us regulate stress because it gives us those happy hormones, right? It gives us serotonin and dopamine and endorphins, and it helps us feel good. And so, you know, we have a culture where we are getting those hits of those happy hormones in a very repetitive way almost with things like social media, the world of swiping, all of these kinds of things. But it's not sustainable. So those are momentary kinds of experiences that feel good for a second, whereas getting yourself up, getting to the activity, doing the activity, completing it is something that's much more long-term and sustainable, and it actually gives us so much more. And so we have the activity and we have this physical release and I think this is one of the biggest things. It's that sense of release, right? I've done something. It feels good. I feel stronger. I might feel sore, but I feel like I've accomplished something that was hard, right? And that in itself can help us reduce our anxiety. Because if we remember, anxiety is about a response to threat. And we can start to feel strong and safe and secure in ourselves. That helps us shift our perspective of what is threatening.
Katherine Hurtig
You've talked about weight lifting and activities like more mindful activities like yoga. I guess we did talk about running, but is there anything about getting your heart rate up like the science around that, does that help?
Stephanie Warner
I mean, I think it can of course, like, you know, cardiovascular exercise is really important for our heart, for our, for our systems. I would say though people who naturally have a very high level of stress are already probably pretty elevated and so the cortisol that comes from that kind of activity, maybe isn't the most helpful right away but it is something to work into. And something to sort of work towards achieving. If you're already really at high stress, adding a stressful activity might not be ideal, right? And so it's sometimes like balance, right? And OK, this is where I start. And then maybe I start to be able to regulate my nervous system a little bit better a little bit differently. And I'm not in that state of stress all the time. Then maybe adding in some of those higher-stress activities. And you know, of course, there's lots of research on all kinds of exercise, right? You can do group classes. You can do HIIT workouts. There are so many things out there. I think it's just a matter of finding what feels good in your body and doing what you adore. Because if you don't love it, you're not going to do it.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, that's the biggest thing is finding something that you love doing. Like I've, you know, I've run into friends. Whether it's like going to the gym or running, there's this feeling of an obligation. I gotta go to the gym or like, I gotta go for a run. But I hate doing it. Then don't do it.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah, I mean. Why are you torturing yourself?
Katherine Hurtig
I know, you have to find something that you'd like. And I mean that can be a bit of a chore in the beginning, but, like you're saying, there are so many options.
Stephanie Warner
And it could be a chore, or it could be an experience, right? Try new things. OK. Can I go out and try this thing? Maybe you love wall climbing or rock climbing? Getting to be able to do those different experiences. I think the way we look at it is, is it a chore? Or is this I'm learning something about myself?
Katherine Hurtig
It's all about that mindset shift.
Stephanie Warner
Right and so. You know, and who knows, maybe you try something once and you're like, oh, I hate that. And then you try it again a couple of years later and like, oh, actually, that was really fun and maybe a lot of that had to do with the situation or the circumstance or what you were going through at the time. So sometimes ruling things out isn't always ideal, and sometimes there's this idea of being able to be consistent and try it a couple of times, right? And so, I mean, that was like me with running. I want to want to run, but I didn't love running until I was able to be consistent with it and to give myself a chance. Yeah, to be like, OK to get to, it's like a shift from this is an activity that is good for my body and I should do it, to this is something that connects me to me. Right. I think that there's a really tangible moment for a lot of people where the activity becomes about connecting to themselves, and I had the same thing with yoga. You know, yoga is this thing that I do for my body that's supposed to be good. And I remember the exact moment when it shifted into something that was spiritual.
Katherine Hurtig
I love that. Yeah I totally know what you mean about running like I, you know, back in junior high, high school, it was different because I don't want to say I wasn't good at it, but I didn't have the discipline back then to make it consistent. So yeah, there wasn't any enjoyment there. But when, yeah, when I brought it in and it's and used that term; should, I think it comes up a lot with mental health stuff like, you know, thinking it's this obligation and that's something I should be doing. Yeah. If we take that away.
Stephanie Warner
And you know, I think that sometimes we get into this mindset like, OK, I need to do it every day or, you know, this is my plan. I'm going to do it five days a week. I'm going to be consistent. But we become so rigid with ourselves that we don't allow space for flexibility or to listen to what our body needs. So maybe some weeks I might need to do that for five days. Yeah, or maybe next week I can only do three and shaming myself or beating myself up for that is not helpful or getting into the mindset of, you know, all my progress is lost, right? It's done. It's gone. I can't. I can't do this. I'm not a runner, right? I'm not capable, but really, it's just about being able to pick back up and start again, right? So every day is a new opportunity to do something different. And you know, I think we see this a lot, right? There are a lot of people who are so critical, and I know that you had a previous podcast talking about the ideas of self-compassion and how we can be kind to ourselves in this moment, right? We would never say, I would never say to you Katherine, oh my God. You didn't run today. What are you thinking? I'd be like you know what Katherine? Let's get up and go for a run tomorrow. What do you think?
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, like we think that it should always be kind of this uphill progression. Like we're always going to get better and that would be so much pressure. Yeah, some days, some years. Like you're not going to be as good at an activity as you were before, but there’s like no value around that if that makes sense. It should be more about enjoying the process then…
Stephanie Warner
And what about the victory of maintaining? Cause that's hard too, right, you make all these gains. You make all this progress, and then maybe you have an injury, but you're able to maintain your strength and your stamina through that. Yeah, the persistence to maintain is also equally important.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, like what I hear you saying it is just really. Like thinking about different parts of it as success and, I don’t know if growth is the right word, but yeah.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah, I mean, it takes courage to get up and try something new.To put on your runners when you don't want to. Yeah, to roll out your mat when you're like, oh, I don't want to go there. Right. Those are all tiny victories that allow us to build, right? Getting in your car, going to the gym, driving to the mountains, whatever it is, wherever it is you're going. Those are all little victories that you need to celebrated, too, I think, anyway.
Katherine Hurtig
I remember years ago the gym that I went to, it was kind of far away it was like I don't know, a good 15-minute drive and there would be plenty of days where I'd drive all the way there. I couldn't find a parking spot right away, so I'd just head home and I guess I wasn't meant to work out today.
Stephanie Warner
It’s interesting that the stats usually are that unless it's within 9 minutes of your work or home, you won't go.
Katherine Hurtig
Well, yeah. Convenience is huge. Can we overdo it when it comes to exercise? We've talked about how it's more like it's better to be just overall consistent and sticking to a rigid amount of time, but is there a point where we can do too much and that's detrimental to our mental health?
Stephanie Warner
Yes, I think this is an important conversation because it's like the dark side of this idea of health. Yeah, right. And when it becomes obsessive or it is a compulsion, or when we get to the place of, I have to do this to be perfect. Yeah. And it's no longer about enjoyment. It's something that we feel like we need to do or that we have to do. I think it can be very damaging.
Katherine Hurtig
And so you said about like, the all or nothing.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. And there's a lot of people who can fall into that unhealthy relationship with exercise, where it is no different than any other addictive behaviour, right? So if you think about, you know, we think about addiction in terms of substance use or gambling. But there so many people have those same addictive patterns with exercise, right? The thing is, in our society, it's rewarded.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, right. It seems more healthy, right?
Stephanie Warner
So it seems healthy or you know, I don't know if you've ever experienced meeting somebody who's maybe gone through a transition with their weight. And maybe they've had a really hard time and they've been struggling and they haven't been eating and they've been over-exercising, but everybody's like oh, you look so great. That's so, so good. So good for you, right? And it's these pieces that are rewarded in our society because exercise can appear so healthy and beneficial and like good for you, you're committing to something. We forget to stop and ask ourselves. You know what else is going on here? And be curious, right?
Katherine Hurtig
So I guess it. Yeah, if it starts impacting your life in other ways. Like you, you know you won't go out socially because you've got exercise or you know if you're restricting yourself too much.
Stephanie Warner
Hmm. Yeah. And I mean, over-exercising has its impacts on the body, right? It can create a lot of damage to our physical body. But then there's also that weight on our mental health, right? Yeah. And when it becomes consuming, yeah.
Katherine Hurtig
Can you think of any examples with any clients that you've worked with where you've seen exercise play a beneficial role in their lives or vice versa? Like you've seen the negative effects.
Stephanie Warner
I think in terms of benefits, I think most people tend to benefit from incorporating that. I can think about some people in particular who were quite apprehensive to get started and then maybe joined the group sports. Or like you know, here in Calgary, there's the Calgary Sports and Social Club, right where they're joining something and becoming a part of a community and, you know, that is so important in sport and exercise is you know, some of us want to do it solo or independently and it's an independent adventure. But a lot of people do it, initiating social connections and finding people with similar values. And so I don't think that there are too many experiences where it is negative. I think the times where it is negative is if that's already a pattern, right? And somebody is maybe struggling in other ways and this is the way that they cope is through over-exercising or you know through restricting their nutrition or things like that. And oftentimes those things can kind of go hand in hand and you know it can be complex to work through those things, but it's usually an already existing struggle. Yeah, it's not something that usually develops as we're learning about healthy moderation and developing our own exercise routine.
Katherine Hurtig
When you were talking about community exercise it made me think of another way that running is kind of opening my eyes to some things. It's showing me different areas of myself that I guess I'd want to say are like opportunities to work on and improve because I run solo, not really because I don't want to be around other people, but because I'm just so like I compare myself so much when it comes to running. I just think I'm too slow. Like I'm way too slow to run with this group of people. I'll just, like, hold them back. And so it shows you like, OK, well, you got some things to work on there.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah, and that narrative really can impact our ability to show up. And it can stand in our way. Right, because I don't know, did those people say that to you?
Katherine Hurtig
Nope, no they didn’t.
Stephanie Warner
And so sometimes, you know, we forget that there are a lot of people out there who are willing to either speed up or slow down to meet us so that there is inclusion. Yeah, right. And, you know, of course, there's nothing wrong with running solo or independently and having that time. And I'm sure you know what this is like you know, that first couple kilometres is like uh and then you get into a groove and you get that space and you have that like clarity. And then running with people is different. Right. But that comparison is what gets us and holds us back in a lot of things.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah but I can see the social benefit of it, especially through team sports and stuff. I was only on a soccer team when I was in grade two. I wasn't much for team sports, but I can see, you know, from friends and how it can be a really important part of your life. Hmm. How do you suggest addressing potential barriers when it comes to exercise? Maybe time constraints or physical limitations that you may kind of run into when you're trying to adopt a more active lifestyle?
Stephanie Warner
So, I think it is very important to talk about barriers and to explore them because they do exist and I think that they exist for a lot of people. I think that when we understand what could stand in our way, we can do something about it, right? So if I know that I'm going to struggle with a particular time to do something then I know that I can maybe adjust my schedule, or I could find a different time or something, right? If I know that, maybe, you know, I've got a whole bunch of things on my plate and it's going to be hard, I can work on ways to implement that into my schedule if it's important to me or being flexible, I think that there are a lot of financial barriers. I think that there can be a lot of barriers in terms of believing that we can do it or thinking that we can. And I think it's really about building that trust in ourselves to just be able to try something new. To start. And even if it doesn't go perfectly, that's OK. You know, of course, barriers exist. Just understanding what they are for each of us individually can help us to identify what we can do about it, because I do think that it can be solvable based on whatever situation we are in.
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, that idea is flexibility, like you said.
Stephanie Warner
So like for example, you have an injury, right? Maybe you aren't able to run. OK, well, what else could we do? And it doesn't have to cost a trillion dollars, which I know we can all, you know, sympathize with the fact that some of these activities are very expensive and not everybody has that in their budget. OK, so maybe I will do a yoga program on YouTube. Instead of going to a studio, is it a studio? No. Do I still benefit from it? Yes. Right.
Katherine Hurtig
With the idea that it's, you know, even a little bit of movement is good physiologically, can you kind of explain how even a bit of movement is helpful? Like, if I just go for a walk around the block. What is that doing for me? What is that doing for my body? What is it doing for my mind?
Stephanie Warner
Have you ever experienced being overwhelmed?
Katherine Hurtig
Yeah, nearly daily.
Stephanie Warner
OK, so when we are overwhelmed with what is happening our body and our mind is assessing that the situation is unfolding faster than we can keep up with. And we're essentially saying to ourselves I can't do it and when we are in that state, it feels almost impossible to do anything. We actually have to remove ourselves from that situation to do something differently. Yeah. And so something like getting up and walking changes your physiology from that moment of intense emotion when I'm saying I'm so overwhelmed I can't do anything and it's taking you out of that into something new, right? So even if you just get up and walk around your office, you have completely shifted your state because you're not stuck in that moment where it feels like a trap right? So being able to get up and you know for some people that I'm gonna go put cold water on my face, or I'm gonna you know walk around the house, or I'm gonna run up the stairs. I'm gonna go for a walk around the block. It's changing your body's physiology to something more supportive where you can be regulated enough to make an accurate assessment of what is happening.
Katherine Hurtig
Right. That's fascinating. Yeah, it's hopeful to, like, hear that even doing something so small can have such a benefit.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. And you know what, there are so many people now who are working from home, and maybe it's not that you can go for a walk around the block, but maybe you could run up your stairs, yeah. Right. If you don't have stairs, you can run, maybe it's, you know, doing something in your chair. Maybe it's a big stretch or you know, giving yourself a big yawn or something to physically change your body. It doesn't have to be extreme all the time.
Katherine Hurtig
Is there anything else, Stephanie, that we haven't covered anything you want our listeners to kind of take away from this idea about incorporating physical activity to further their mental health?
Stephanie Warner
Well, yeah, I think you know what I hope people take away from this is that they can start wherever they're at. It doesn't have to be expensive. You don't need the fanciest equipment. Don't wait till Monday. Yeah. Just start now. Start with what you have give yourself permission to be a learner and whatever it is you're doing right, approach it with fun and playfulness and curiosity. And give yourself a chance to find something that you like and if you don't like it? Cool. That's OK. Move on. And that it is really, really exercise is one of the most underrated tools for mental health, right? For our overall well-being, it is something that we can incorporate that doesn't have a big cost associated with it. If you don't want it to or if you don’t have the capacity to, but it is something that can have a substantial impact on your overall well-being, and your sense of self and your connection to yourself.
Katherine Hurtig
Totally. Thank you so much for this conversation, Stephanie.
Stephanie Warner
Yeah. You're welcome.
Katherine Hurtig
You've been listening to Living Fully. Thanks for tuning in. This episode was produced by Luiza Campos, Jenna Forbes, and by me, Katherine Hurtig. Special thanks to Stephanie Warner.
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Living Fully as a production of Calgary Counselling Centre and recorded in Calgary on Treaty 7 Territory. Living Fully podcast is not a substitute or alternative for professional care or treatment. Calgary Counselling Centre, Counselling Alberta provide effective counselling for anyone in Alberta with no wait list and no financial barriers. Find us online at calgarycounselling.com or counsellingalberta.com. For help across Canada and the United States call 211. If you are outside of Canada and the US seek help from your general medical practitioner.