So, I’ll be honest, I had not seen much of this at all. So I had a good look at the research.
Now, we’ve known for years that the endorphin release from exercise is real. Some of us seem to get this ‘feel good’ factor from exercising.
Caveat though. Do I want to exercise? Not really. But do I love having exercised? Yes, I love the feeling, that sense of achievement.
So back to this ‘hope molecule’…(or PGC -1a) and helping with depression.
Now, when you look at this in the research, it’s hard to research, it’s hard to show the expression of the molecule as it is expressed in many ways.
Much of the research is in rodents, showing that muscles release this molecule and when this is higher, rodents seem to show more ‘hope’ and ‘keep going’ with certain activities, like swimming so they don’t drown.
If you have seen ‘Finding Nemo’, then think of the scene ‘just keep swimming, just keep swimming’ (this is a fish telling a fish to keep going / keep swimming despite what is going on right now).
I’m not prepared to sit here (or stand up and do star jumps so I am exercising) and say that exercise solves depression / mental health.
Does it help? And could this be one way in which it can help with our mood? I am happy to say YES.
I see this at Fruci Fit all of the time. You start sessions. You make friends. Perhaps you keep each other accountable. Maybe you do a run / walk with someone from there. Maybe you give each other some tips on eating better. I could go on. These are all positive habits which make you feel better.
And this aligns with the 7 pillars of mental health
1- Physical fitness – doing exercise, be it for endorphins, making everyday tasks easier, getting fitter, stronger or even the ‘hope’ molecules.
2- Nutrition – Getting the nutrients you need but also in the right amounts to manage obesity, mobility and performance
3- Community – We see this all of the time at Fruci Fit. People make friends. Walk together. Run together. Keep each other accountable at sessions. Feel part of a community. It’s something I first really saw the power of when I worked in the NHS and Public Health in Diabetes. Seeing like minded people with diabetes, come together, share practices, strategies, was super powerful. It wasn’t ‘just me’. We were in this ‘together’. And we know from research that support and accountability is the key element when deciding which diet is best for you.
4- Mindset – Are you focussing on what you can’t do or what you CAN do? Do things happen TO you or do they happen FOR you. Am I looking for what’s wrong or am I looking for right?
5- Learning – Learning may be one of the best ways to prevent the development of brain diseases such as dementia.
6- Compassion – be it helping others, sending an appreciation message or volunteering.
7 – Mindfulness – in today’s go go, 24/7, scroll scroll world we live in…how often are we actually in the present moment. Just being. Which says a lot. As if your mind is always in the past or the future, and you are tired and stressed…are we stressing about things which are not even real? Something I do – most days – is journal my wins and to dos every day/
So, yes. Exercise is not the ONLY thing.
But it is sometimes the gateway to so many of the 7 pillars above.
Just like we see at Fruci Fit.
Matt