best exercises to get rid of anxiety

[conky149er]

ive recently been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and i'm really having a tough time coping with it, they keep telling me to exercise more to feel better but I just end up feeling worse, probably because im out of shape but anyway, what exercises do you guys do to get rid of anxiety?

[YoBigFatMomma]

Heavy compounds, especially lower body exercises like squats and deadlifts. Sets of 20 rep breathing squats are a good place to start if you can maintain good form.

[anna-maro]

I think it's only gonna take anxiety away if you really like working out, if it's like your hobby and takes your mind off other things, if you can transfer your energy from anger and frustration in to working out. Even tho exercise is good for you and you really should get in shape, if this isn't the case, maybe you should find other activities and hobbies that you enjoy for stress relief.

[NickR77]

You could try jujitsu. Try it for a week, sign up for a month if you see potential...

^^ also I think its pretty well known that being in shape allows you to deal with stressful situations (anxiety included). You need a cardio element to deal with stress imo, and jujitsu has that cardio element and also sort of a violent element which is good for dealing with stress I think.

[ZoSo15]

Best thing for anxiety for me is just plain getting bigger.

Just stick with it. And do your research so you don't waste any time.

[JOHN GARGANI]

ive recently been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and i'm really having a tough time coping with it, they keep telling me to exercise more to feel better but I just end up feeling worse, probably because im out of shape but anyway, what exercises do you guys do to get rid of anxiety?

you joined this forum in 2009 and 2 years later make your first post and THIS is it????????????


there are NO specific exercises to reduce anxiety...

[gomez26]

you joined this forum in 2009 and 2 years later make your first post and THIS is it????????????
.

give him a break dude, it took him 2 yrs to get over the anxiety just to make his first post......

at least we know will be a long time b4 he bothers us again

[JOHN GARGANI]

give him a break dude, it took him 2 yrs to get over the anxiety just to make his first post......

at least we know will be a long time b4 he bothers us again

LOL...reps for your answer!

[Tyciol]

you joined this forum in 2009 and 2 years later make your first post and THIS is it????????????

Why alienate him? Some people use accounts to lurk and favourite posts, maybe too shy until now to talk.

there are NO specific exercises to reduce anxiety...

Only because "anxiety" is too vague. Specific exercises can target specific types of anxiety. For example: doing overhead presses reduces the fear of being unable to stop something falling on top of you, and handstand push ups reduce the fear of falling on top of your head. Even push ups help reduce the fear of being unable to stop falling on one's face.

A simple front roll can be pretty liberating too.

I imagine a pull up would also reduce primal fears of being unable to climb a ladder, wall, or cliffhanger scenario.

Heavy deads could reduce reluctance to have people depend on you to save them if a wooden beam falls on them after Rhas sets fire to your mansion.

[nzgs]

Heavy compounds create a significant hormonal response that can make you feel euphoric after completing a set. Aside from the fact that weight-training will improve your looks and therefore your confidence, the hormonal response you will get is a great way to achieve a natural high.

I beat severe depression a couple of years ago with weight training. Went on SSRI's for a couple of months and saw some improvement but it was only when I started doing strength training that I felt properly happy for the first time in years.

[Beachman]

OP- you could try running, if lifting doesn't do anything for you.

[Tears]

Jog, dude.

[womanoid]

I got a dog & go for walks outside now. Totally helps with my GAD & PTSS. Oh, and of course I'm taking an SNRI, that helps a ton.

[pkahnman]

your prob depressed cuz youve been on a fitness site for about 2 years and this is your first post

stop complaining about life and do something about it

you halfta stick with it for long time to start feeling better

[geoffstgermaine]

My ex-wife has very severe anxiety disorders. I recall from her doctors recommendations that when they recommended exercise they really meant anything that got the heart rate up with the intent of getting a dopamine/serotonin response. Unfortunately this didn't really help her, but I do know of other people (through support groups) that used this very effectively.

I'd suggest trying running/jogging first. I always find these pretty effective to get that "feel good" effect pretty readily. Try it out and see what happens.

Kudos to you for trying to find something that works. My experience with my ex has shown me that while prescription drugs are certainly sometimes necessary, things like psychotherapy and lifestyle changes are going to be more effective in the long run. I really hope you're able to find something with exercise that can help with your anxiety.

Don't listen to anyone on here giving you a hard time. I've found a lot of people telling people with mental illness to just get over it. Unfortunately they're real medical conditions, but because you don't look sick, people are given the stigma of being lazy by a lot of ignorant people who know nothing about it.

[jhoffman52]

Just be aware that when you first start lifting the fatigue caused my exerting your muscles is linked to causing anxiety. Its not the sames anxiety as with a disorder but you may feel worse at first until your body gets used to and your body adjusts. Going for long jogs like someone said could be helpful too.

[ChecksandGiggles]

Squats. If you force yourself to survive under the bar, everything else seems easy.

[PinkDumbells]

Hugs.

[Mellopear]

^^ Haha! Good answer

[conky149er]

My ex-wife has very severe anxiety disorders. I recall from her doctors recommendations that when they recommended exercise they really meant anything that got the heart rate up with the intent of getting a dopamine/serotonin response. Unfortunately this didn't really help her, but I do know of other people (through support groups) that used this very effectively.

I'd suggest trying running/jogging first. I always find these pretty effective to get that "feel good" effect pretty readily. Try it out and see what happens.

Kudos to you for trying to find something that works. My experience with my ex has shown me that while prescription drugs are certainly sometimes necessary, things like psychotherapy and lifestyle changes are going to be more effective in the long run. I really hope you're able to find something with exercise that can help with your anxiety.

Don't listen to anyone on here giving you a hard time. I've found a lot of people telling people with mental illness to just get over it. Unfortunately they're real medical conditions, but because you don't look sick, people are given the stigma of being lazy by a lot of ignorant people who know nothing about it.

I'm sorry to hear about your wife. thats what ive always tried to tell people just because its not a broken arm that you can see it doesnt mean its not bad.

I used to be a kickboxer and i'm really into baseball, played baseball from the time i got up all day yesterday and felt great except at night time, my anxiety is about really going to bed and i just can't sleep

[Tyciol]

Hugs.

This is actually true even if you don't have anyone who wants to hug you. For example, I own one of these:


Once the base was filled up with water, this might seem odd but I wrapped my arms around it, jumped up and wrapped my legs around it and held myself up for a while.

Feels good man

Something else that is cool which you can do if you have good grip strength and bare feet, is if there is a place with open beams (like some basements).

Is basically what it looked like although I think it was slightly wider which gives you more room to grip. I just found out the name I think they are called I-beams:


Basically you put your hands on either side (like a neutral hammer grip) and swing your feet up and externally rotate your hips and cling your toes to it.

If you want you can also move them further down if you can hold yourself up with your big toes and do bodyweight rows. This variation can work with shoes since you are putting the underside of the end of your medial foot on top of the lower beam. You pretty much need to be farefoot to use your toes gripping power for the sloth version though, though maybe those vibram finger shoes would work, or toe socks. I find socks can suck though since they reduce the friction, maybe an advanced variation for when your feet and posture are stronger. Strive to be as so:

I never got strong enough to build the required confidence to try free-hanging it like the guy on the right. I imagine you could work up to trying this if you were doing weighted ones to build up your toe strength and had a solid hand-stand strength so that you could basically try kicking up into a handstand and having feet on either side of the beam and then pulling up in some kinda knee flexion reverse squatting movement to get to the bar.

I got this idea because I realized that while I could do pull ups with both prone/supine grip (you just have to lean back a bit, which is good for hitting upper back anyway) due to the width, moving to either side with army-style hammer grip wasn't really possible, but you could do partial-range pull ups until your head touched it. I actually wore a big padded helmet and pulled explosively to ram my head into the beam as I got tired, lol.

Then I realized if you can't do a vertical pull you can lean back to get the extra range (like a bodyweight pull up) but since there was no ground below you to push against to lift your legs, bringing the legs up and pulling to the beam was an alternative way of getting that form.

Unfortunately since I moved I don't have access to one anymore so I can't do it =(

[t0mmyb0y]

Buy some good headphones for your ipod that cancel all outside noise and blast your fav tunes while working out. I suffer from anxiety and depression and thisss + gym has saved my life. You will get in THE ZONE and forget about everything. At least i did...

[dontburstmy]

try yoga....

ive recently been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and i'm really having a tough time coping with it, they keep telling me to exercise more to feel better but I just end up feeling worse, probably because im out of shape but anyway, what exercises do you guys do to get rid of anxiety?

[javyn]

For what it's worth man, I had anxiety, panic attacks, the works... and doing burpees, lots and lots of burpees cured it. I'm lifting now though b/c I want to get bigger.

[jason1903]

This is actually true even if you don't have anyone who wants to hug you.

I don't think that's going to make him feel any better.

[sportyaccordy]

Beat your meat

[terman1]

This is actually true even if you don't have anyone who wants to hug you. For example, I own one of these:


Once the base was filled up with water, this might seem odd but I wrapped my arms around it, jumped up and wrapped my legs around it and held myself up for a while.

Feels good man

Something else that is cool which you can do if you have good grip strength and bare feet, is if there is a place with open beams (like some basements).

Is basically what it looked like although I think it was slightly wider which gives you more room to grip. I just found out the name I think they are called I-beams:


Basically you put your hands on either side (like a neutral hammer grip) and swing your feet up and externally rotate your hips and cling your toes to it.

If you want you can also move them further down if you can hold yourself up with your big toes and do bodyweight rows. This variation can work with shoes since you are putting the underside of the end of your medial foot on top of the lower beam. You pretty much need to be farefoot to use your toes gripping power for the sloth version though, though maybe those vibram finger shoes would work, or toe socks. I find socks can suck though since they reduce the friction, maybe an advanced variation for when your feet and posture are stronger. Strive to be as so:

I never got strong enough to build the required confidence to try free-hanging it like the guy on the right. I imagine you could work up to trying this if you were doing weighted ones to build up your toe strength and had a solid hand-stand strength so that you could basically try kicking up into a handstand and having feet on either side of the beam and then pulling up in some kinda knee flexion reverse squatting movement to get to the bar.

I got this idea because I realized that while I could do pull ups with both prone/supine grip (you just have to lean back a bit, which is good for hitting upper back anyway) due to the width, moving to either side with army-style hammer grip wasn't really possible, but you could do partial-range pull ups until your head touched it. I actually wore a big padded helmet and pulled explosively to ram my head into the beam as I got tired, lol.

Then I realized if you can't do a vertical pull you can lean back to get the extra range (like a bodyweight pull up) but since there was no ground below you to push against to lift your legs, bringing the legs up and pulling to the beam was an alternative way of getting that form.

Unfortunately since I moved I don't have access to one anymore so I can't do it =(

LMAO. Dude, I just spit water out all over my desk.

[TomMurry]

The best kind of exercises to relieve symptoms are Breathing Exercises.
Take control of the situation, maintain focus, control and be aware of your breathing. Block out unnecessary distractions. Just breathe, focus and allow yourself to relax.

If you have more questions, feel free to PM me.

[Rasputin4]

I'd say the ones you enjoy doing the most.

[CanadianJohn]

your prob depressed cuz youve been on a fitness site for about 2 years and this is your first post

stop complaining about life and do something about it

you halfta stick with it for long time to start feeling better

1. anxiety does not = depression. Depression is a mood disorder, not an anxiety disorder
2. stop trying to be funny, you're rude.
3. he's not complaining, he's simply asking for advice. Even if he was complaining it would be acceptable because he has a mental disorder and cannot help it.
4. stick with what exactly? Give him useful advice, not empty advice.