Archive for the ‘exercise’ Category

Bipolar Disorder and Exercise

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

Bipolar Disorder and Exercise. Why it helps.
There are a few technical reasons:

1. It increases serotonin
2. It creates endorphins

There are also tons of health reasons that I’m sure you know.

But did you know that exercise helps depression for one psychological reason?
When you get one thing done, such as taking a short walk, your brain finds it a lot easier to get the next thing done. Exercise cuts down on depression brain resistance! How can your brain tell you that you never get anything done and that you’re a failure if you just exercised! You have duped the brain and that is a secret to managing the illness.

I have 50 ways to get things done in my book Get it Done When You’re Depressed. I use them all. That is how I write my books even when I’m crying from the stress. We can get things done when we’re depressed, we just have to bypass our ill brains and exercise is one of the best ways to do this.

One of my favorite strategies in the book is to Think Like an Athlete. I use that tip a lot! I just wrote a blog about exercise and how it helped me manage a pretty bad anxiety mood swing!

Julie Fast

PS: I just read this blog post again as I posted it and I am going to take a walk. I’m rapid cycling and a walk can help that. It sure if frustrating to be up for a few hours and then to go down. The exercise will definitely help.

Exercise ideas

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

Here are some tips that I’m using myself- gosh, does the need to lose weight and exercise ever end! :)

 1. If you work at home, wear your walking shoes and go outside every few hours and walk around the block once.

2. Cable TV has an on demand section that actually has free exercise sessions. I did AM Yoga this morning.

3. Do weights in front of a DVD.

4. Don’t worry about what you’re wearing. It’s fine to walk in your street clothes. Sometimes I just get overwhelmed having to put on my exercise stuff- but in reality, it’s just a walk! Sweaty clothes can be washed just as easily as exercise clothes!

There is a lot we can do to exercise just 20 minutes a day instead of being guilty all day! 

Julie

Bipolar Disorder, Exercise and Physical Injuries

Friday, September 5th, 2008

I’ve had a lot of physical injuries since my bipolar disorder diagnosis in 1995. A lot of it has to do with the 23 medications I tried. The up and down weight gain and the stress the meds put on my immune system have really taken a toll!

These days I focus on my physical health all day long. I’m eating a diet I feel I can stick to for the long term and I’m working hard to heal an injured shoulder and hands.

Why am I writing this? Because our physical bodies are something we can control when we have bipolar disorder. Most of us can exercise.

I remind myself that the depression in my life is a reality- but so is my ability to take care of my body when my mind is not healthy.

What do you think?

These days I have a mantra:

My body is 100% healthy. My hands are completely healed.

It helps!
Julie