CAN EXERCISE REDUCE STRESS?

Why moving about more can make you feel calmer and think clearer

- WORDS AILSA HARVEY

When facing a challenging, scary or demanding situation, the natural human response is stress. Hormones flood the body to keep it alert, ready for a fight-or-flight response. This evolved as a survival mechanism when experiencing threats. However, stress can be all-consuming, and these days it's usually brought on by the personal interpretation of an event rather than a genuinely life-threatening situation, resulting in more stress than is beneficial. Chronic stress can suppress key biological systems, such as the immune and digestive systems, as well as negatively impacting a person's mental health.