Fitness does count in stressful times. The more inactive we are, the less motivated we are to get up and accomplish other things that can make us feel productive and sane. Stress is high right now. Considering the state of the economy, on top of the other daily responsibilities we have to keep on trucking regardless of our financial hardships, we can feel pretty anxious. When I think of stress, exercise is the number one answer that comes to my mind to help reduce it. I believe that I have taken the role of storytelling when it comes to writing these blogs with the hope of inspiring someone from time to time after reading it. I am not currently active regularly…so maybe this will be inspirational for me as well. A long time ago, when I was a young girl, around the age of fourteen, I was experiencing some stress. (You know, like we all can at any age, for different reasons). I do not know what the anxiety was about necessarily, but I remember feeling affected by it to the point of tears. I was extremely active when I grew up. I was a runner and played on three soccer teams and I loved to exercise. I was on my way to soccer practice with my mom that night and I was crying and telling her that I did not feel up to going into the gym to play indoor soccer. I remember feeling exhausted emotionally. I remember the feeling (for whatever reason) of not wanting to climb out of my mom’s car and up all of the stairs (there were a lot) to the school gym and run around for two hours of practice. My mother listened to me release all of my problems as we sat outside of the school. She finally suggested that exercise is good for stress and that I really should just try to get rid of this through my workout that night, kicking a ball around and running my butt off. I really wanted to hear her tell me that I did not have to go, but I opted to go with my mom’s advice instead. I mean, really, did I have a choice there?  For two hours, we had an intense workout of soccer drills and sprints, and to end it all off, we played a game between all of the players. I talked with others that night and I had to interact with my peers in a sense of team work. I was sweating a lot and I really got my heart pumping. It felt wonderful!!! I left that gym feeling like a whole new woman! My mother was right. Honestly, as much as I exercised growing up at that point, I never did it for the purpose of stress reduction. That was the first time I looked at exercise in that light…and it was a marvelous discovery. Obviously, so marvelous of a discovery, that I still refer to it in times of stress to advise others or even myself. Of course, things are not always as easy as it was for me at fourteen. But this story is important in showing the changes your spirit can go through by just getting up and moving sometimes. Imagine if you made a habit of it. Studies have proven that exercise enhances memory and learning, heightens alertness, helps us think more clearly, and improves specific cognitive functioning. Also, physical activity improves our mood and therefore relieves depression and anxiety. It triggers the release of dopamine, norepinephrine, and endorphins (our natural built in antidepressants). That explains the natural “high” that I got after my awesome workout the night in my story. How nice is that? It provides an outlet for releasing negative emotions, such as anger, frustration, and irritability. Researchers have even found that exercise works at least as well as Zoloft, a popular prescription drug, in treating clinical depression and keeping the condition from returning. And just for the record, I was inspired by writing this blog. After I dropped off my daughter at school this morning, I opted to exercise. I walked for twenty minutes around the neighborhoods near her school, and then found my way to a high school track that I used to run on competitively. I challenged myself to run just one mile. I believe it was one year ago that I randomly ran one mile around my neighborhood. So, this was a challenge. I did it, with one extra lap for cool down and then walked back to my daughter’s school. It felt really good actually. I was tired, but in a great way. I hope to utilize this time in an exercise-fashion more often. Do you have any motivational exercise stories….or any routines that work for you, that could possibly work for beginners? I would like to hear it. Maybe even some other readers would like to hear your story too.