Archive for September, 2009
How to Release Stress
Some stress is not bad for us, but when stress gets to be chronic, it has major health implications. Knowing how to release stress before it becomes a problem will help you prevent it from affecting your health.
It is important to get an early jump on stress early, so don't wait until you are really stressed before you do something about it. When you start to feel tense, take a moment to stretch and breathe. Stretching lengthens the muscles and allows extra oxygen to flow into them, removing tension within the muscle. Deep breathing has been scientifically proven to calm the body and mind, so it is a valuable tool in releasing stress.
This really great stretching is done in a standing position; stand with your feet apart, arms by your sides. As you take in a slow, deep breath through your nose, raise your arms out to the side and up over your head, keeping them straight. Hold your breath for 2 seconds as you keep stretching as high as possible. Slowly breathe out through your mouth as you lower your arms to the starting position. Repeat another 2 times.
A great stress releasing strategy involves stretching like Pilates for beginners for releasing stress. If you are having a stressful day, take a break and go for a brisk 10 minute walk, preferably outside. The activity will get your heart rate up to drive oxygen to every cell while the increased rate of breathing helps to expel stale air from your lungs. Pilates for beginners releases stress and promotes increased levels of serotonin, which is often called the feel-good hormone. Pilates for beginners will help to protect you from feeling stressed as often and also helps you cope with it.
Meditation is an ancient technique that has been used for centuries to calm the mind and body, and it is now being used to treat anxiety disorders and depression. Just forget about all the cosmic craziness for a minute surrounding meditation. It’s another useful tool to help release stress. The process of meditation is easy to learn, and is as simple a technique as sitting in a comfortable chair listening to some calming music.
Concentrating on your breathing for 5 minutes in deeply through your nose and out through your mouth. It is a simple form of meditation, that doesn't take very long to master, is very useful to help you release stress.
To perform this simple stress-releasing meditation, sit comfortably in a chair. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose; hold the breath, then breathe out forcefully through your mouth. Repeat this process for a total of 5 breaths. You will find that you feel calmer and more relaxed after this simple practice.
Using strategies on how to release stress and tension will help to protect you from the effects of chronic stress. It is important to realize that stress has real symptoms that can lead to other more serious health conditions such as high blood pressure.