What’s Holding People Back From Exercising?

A look at the messages being sent.

I offer many apologies for missing a posting last week. My mom went through surgery that resulted in a four night hospital stay. She came home Friday, my usual posting day and things have only started to slow down a week later.

 With her gone to get better, the morning and evening care taking activities for her two dogs fell to me. I was able to wake at the usual hour and go to bed at the same time. During the day I worked as usual, with the exception of the surgery day which saw me twitching about the waiting room for seven hours I’d expected to be no more than four. The evenings consisted of taking care of the unruly canines, making dinner, and visiting my mom.

On the surface it’s all pretty standard. Mild, minimally limiting changes which were temporary in nature. And I had to keep telling myself that as the week progressed and I grew more tired, moody, irritable, and fatigued.

As someone who lives with and manages anxiety—I do not allow myself to “suffer” from it—those symptoms are well-known adversaries, but this was more than that. I had a feeling I knew what it was by Wednesday when I found myself halfway to tears at each minor inconvenience. I needed to work out. Not wanted, needed.

Geez, I’d only missed two of my usual days. Couldn’t I keep it together for just one off week? Well, no. Not only was I not going to the gym, I was also more sedentary due the extra time spent sitting at the hospital. I’d let go of one of my main coping skills and it acted quickly.

I was already tired out by the stress of extra duties and general worry—surgeries are scary, recovery is risky. Inactivity increased the effects tenfold. My energy zapped, concentration reduced, and productivity plummeted.

I’m not writing all of this to complain. It was a necessary but temporary change that I didn’t mind making. Plus, I’ve gotten back into the swing of it all with some determination. I’m writing this anecdote because it hit me so intensely how important exercise is for my mental health and I know it’s not just me!

In theory, the moral of my story is something like, “exercise is good for your mental health, do it!” If it  were as easy as just getting out there and doing it then gyms would stay packed all year long, parks would be filled with runners, and it wouldn’t be one of the top New Year’s resolutions time and again. While I’ve experienced firsthand that exercise is good and should be done regularly, that’s not the moral of this story nor is it the ending.

Why? Because that message is already out there. Do a search of “exercise and mental health” and you’re bound to find a wealth of knowledge telling you the two are connected. The experts tend to agree about the benefits of exercise;

It lifts mood via feel-good chemicals in the brain. Dr. Gingell wrote in an article for Psychology Today that exercise stimulates endorphins and enkephalins. If you’re not yet familiar with these, they’re the natural compounds your brain produces that help manage pain and stress. In other words, they help you cope when life gets tough.

Exercise feeds the brain. In the same article, Dr. Gingell asserts that it also improves blood flow to the brain delivering oxygen allowing for increased development. Basically, it’s just one more muscle you’re working out and building.

It leads to reduction in loneliness. Whether you go to the gym or enlist a workout buddy, this can be a great way to reduce loneliness and isolation that is commonly associated with depression. This provides a structured way to increase contact with others. See the article.

And so much more…I don’t want to make this whole article about the benefits of exercise for mental health because, as I said, you can look that up easily and find a plethora of information. This scholarly article simply lists out many of the benefits. It touches on everything from improved sleep, to stress relief, to increased stamina and beyond.

Now, to the real focus of this article; the fact that, despite all the evidence supporting the use of exercise to manage mental health, there is still a great deal of resistance to it. I don’t know how much, it’s merely an observation. But I do know what I’ve seen and read.

I often come across memes demanding others not suggest exercise as a way to treat their mental illness symptoms, finding it an affront. If the reduction in numbers at the gym from January to March are any indication, it’s not something people make a long-term priority. The numbers back that up. In the United States it is estimated only about 23% of adults are getting the recommended amount of physical activity per week based on data from 2010 to 2015 reviewed by the Centers for Disease Control researchers.

It makes sense, that’s the first thing that went for me when last week got tough. It was the first thing to go when I was planning my wedding. It seems like I’m not alone in this experience.Yet, exercise literally helps you manage stress. Shouldn’t that be the first thing we run to when stressed? With all the information and public initiatives out there as well as the movement in mental health services to incorporate total wellness into treatment, you’d think exercise would be the front line behavior change.

So why isn’t it?

I researched and the answers are wide and varied.

Genetics is working against you. In a review of the findings of 2017 study, it is explained that some people have a genetic predisposition to not benefit much from typical exercise. With higher levels of a naturally produced protein, it was found in mice and later in women that there was a reduced benefit to exercise.

It seems this was based on aerobic exercise and it’s unclear if it would apply to low-impact, non-cardio activities such as yoga. Still, the findings certainly demonstrates how people with this resistance to exercise benefits may not look upon working out as a worthwhile option for mental wellness.

You have good reasons. There is a list of reasons not to exercise and they’re typically valid. Ten of them are examined in this writing but the author doesn’t just state them, she also gives suggestions on how to overcome them. Not motivated? Set up a reward system. Too overwhelming? Start small. These two are the first ones that came to my mind when considering this dilemma and I still agree this could be a big part of what people deal with.

You don’t know what the expectation should be. I know for people living with the mental health conditions that see benefits from exercise, such as anxiety and depression, it is hard to be let down by the prospects that gave you hope. You might have the wrong idea of how quickly exercise can act. And it’s not your fault because the information is minimal and contradictory. It’s been said it works as fast as five minutes after exercise is completed all the way to four weeks out following consistent 45 minute sessions, 3 times weekly. The true answer probably lies somewhere in each individual’s experience.

The message is worded wrong. This is my final thought and the one I landed on as I considered this topic. What if people who are in the throes of certain mental illnesses can’t hear the positive aspects of exercise because the brain is too focused on negativity? Depression and anxiety tend to be particularly negativity-focused.

I got to thinking back to the most basic concepts of therapy and the first step jumped out at me. Meet people where they are. If a person is in a negative mind-set, then focus the message on the negative…and taking it away.

Talking about how much working out makes a person feel more energetic probably sounds exhausting to someone who is dealing with hypersomnia and sleeping more than normal. What about forming the message to say that exercise makes exhaustion less terrible. Not better, because “better” might be too far from view at this point. The same can go for saying it raises endorphins and makes you happier. Instead, try stating that it can lift the heavy cloud up a bit. Just a general statement of what will be reduced rather than what will be gained. It’s hard to put much stock in gains when negative thoughts creep in but reduction is a more tangible concept.

I don’t know if I’m on the right track but I’m certain it’s time to change tactics. If some 77% of people in the USA are not getting enough physical activity despite all the research, public messages, and school policies, something has to give. The moral of the story is that the message needs to change and adapt to what we know about people and their needs to make it effective.

Works Cited

Blackwell, Debra L., and Tainya, Clarke C.. “State Variation in Meeting the 2008 Federal Guidelines for Both Aerobic and Muscle-Strengthening Activities Through Leisure-Time Physical Activity Among Adults Aged 18–64: United States, 2010–2015.” National Health Statistics Reports, no. 112, 28 June 2018, pp. 1–21., www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr112.pdf.

“Exercise and Mental Health.” Healthdirect, www.healthdirect.gov.au/exercise-and-mental-health.

Gingell, Sarah. “How Your Mental Health Reaps the Benefits of Exercise.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 22 Mar. 2018, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-works-and-why/201803/how-your-mental-health-reaps-the-benefits-exercise.

Jaines, Kira. “Ten Reasons People Do Not Exercise.” LIVESTRONG.COM, Leaf Group, www.livestrong.com/article/370670-ten-reasons-people-do-not-exercise/.

Misu, Hirofumi, et al. “Deficiency of the Hepatokine Selenoprotein P Increases Responsiveness to Exercise in Mice through Upregulation of Reactive Oxygen Species and AMP-Activated Protein Kinase in Muscle.” Nature Medicine, vol. 23, no. 4, 27 Feb. 2017, pp. 508–516., doi:10.1038/nm.4295.

Weir, Kirsten. “The Exercise Effect.” PsycEXTRA Dataset, vol. 42, no. 11, Dec. 2011, p. 48., doi:10.1037/e725332011-011.

Whiteman, Honor. “Why Do Some People Fail to Respond to Exercise?” Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 1 Apr. 2017, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/316693.php.

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