All Wound Up?
Alain Haller explains how to relieve stress after a hard endurance training day.
Do you often find yourself tense after a hard workout? Though exercise itself is known to relieve stress, overtraining can cause insomnia, anxiety, and more mental strain than you had before. If this is a problem in your world, there are ways to help yourself. Try these tricks to relax after a hard day’s work.
Aromatherapy & Meditation to Promote Relaxation
People have been practicing them for thousands of years. Still, it was not until the last few decades that breathwork and meditation practices began to gain significant traction in the western health and wellness communities. Because a dedicated meditation practice can help to treat anxiety at its root, it can be a great tool in the arsenal of an endurance trainer.
Many people were sceptical at first, but the practice has become quite mainstream recently—which is a good thing, as it has changed many people's lives. Meditation does not require hours of practice a day, either. Even just 10, 15, or 20 minutes a day can positively affect the brain, and you could extend your time even further once you start reaping the rewards.
Aromatherapy uses essential oils and other fragrances to promote relaxation, stress relief, and insomnia. Though the scientific evidence for aromatherapy is less compelling, many people claim to get relief from various ailments through this method. It is worth a shot, as there are few possible adverse effects, and the practice is encouraged by many physicians and therapists.
Playing Games to Focus on Fun
| Playing games is also a great way to relax after a hard training day. A fun thinking game or a puzzle will help you engage different parts of your brain, activating critical thinking centres and distracting you from the day's stress. These games have also been known to slow the progress of neurological diseases like Alzheimer's, so they are a win-win. |  |
Playing alone can benefit you, but playing with a friend or family member is also a good idea. Connecting with others is essential for a healthy mind. A conversation is another way to work out anything troubling you, and laughing out loud can work wonders for anxiety and stress.
Video games are also a good idea, as they improve hand-eye coordination and tactical skills. If you are interested in going digital, fun casino games like slots can help you focus on fun and take your mind off the stress. There are many online options, some of which do not require a deposit. If you want to play with an exciting slot app without shelling out the bucks, you can get free coins for House of Fun by merely entering some promotion codes.
Change Your Scenery to Help Your Mindset
Going somewhere new has the potential to change your mindset almost instantaneously. Travelling has been scientifically proven to promote creativity and joy by changing our neural pathways, firing off new synapses, and injecting a dose of much-needed vitality into our brains.
Of course, most people already know that travel makes them feel good. However, many believe you need to go on a lengthy vacation or a month-long holiday to get the benefits. That is untrue. You do not even have to take time off work to benefit from the mental stimulation of travelling.
You can use the weekend to your advantage, driving to a nearby town you have never been to and taking in the sights there. Stay overnight and taste the food you have never had, check out a new museum, or enjoy the architecture. If you cannot take a weekend for yourself, head out to a part of your city you have never explored before and walk the streets—it will still provide some benefits, but it will fit in better with your tight schedule.
You are not alone if you are stressed, anxious, or have trouble sleeping after a long day of hard training. Luckily, there are things you can do to help the situation. Travelling, meditation, and playing games can all be great mitigation methods, so what are you waiting for? Try them out today.
Page Reference
If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is:
- HALLAR, A. (2020) All Wound Up? [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/article539.htm [Accessed
About the Author
Alain Haller is a freelance journalist who writes about nutrition and training.