Exercise has long been known as a good way to induce relaxation and promote feelings of well being. As a result I have tried to encourage anxiety sufferers to exercise to achieve some peace in their lives.
Although it dawned on me that telling someone what they should do and giving no direction is kind of useless, so I want to provide you with some information about an exercise tool that I’ve been using for awhile that I feel is an effective means of achieving phyiscal fitness.
First I want to outline some problems that I’ve had with exercise in the past.
1. It is boring and it hurts.
2. Joining a gym is expensive.
3. I never liked going to the gym because I am self conscious.
4. Not having a plan can kill any exercise program quick.
To solve these particular worries I have turned to a fitness program called P90X Extreme Home Fitness with Tony Horton. 
Now when I say shape I don’t mean getting buffed necessarily, but you will become fit. This program incorporates weight training, yoga, cardio work, and even comes with a DVD about how to stretch properly.
Exercise is best done with direction, purpose, and motivation. Despite the host being a little goofy this exercise program works. Participating in a structured program will help you to follow through and achieve more relaxation through exercise.
This program also comes with a nutrition plan and fitness guide. It literally spells out what to do and eat to achieve better fitness.
The P90X program is a little on the hard side so if you are totally out of shape be prepared to work hard. Here is what you’ll need to do the program.
1. Dumb bell weights: For ladies 5-15 Ibs and for the men 15-45 Ibs depending on your level of fitness.
2. Resistance bands: There are several different packages of this program that are sold. Some include resistance bands others don’t. If you buy a cheaper version of the program that does not include the bands you could always head to Walmart or Target to get some inexpensive ones.
3. You’ll need some water, a towel, and a good attitude.
That’s it. It’s real basic. The work outs are about an hour long and like I said if you’re totally out of shape it will be a little hard. But don’t worry because you can start slow, do the best you can, and over time build up strength and stamina.
But once you’re burning fat and making those muscles work you will feel a sense of relaxation that you haven’t felt in a long time. After I work out I feel tired, but I also feel calm and mellow.
Elevating your heart rate for at least 30 minutes a day is critical to good health and less anxiety. And remember if P90X is not for you then there are a ton of similar products on the market, this just happens to be the one I actually use and can therefore comment on.
And if the in home thing isn’t for you just make sure that you do some type of excercise. Anxiety sufferers are sometimes afraid of so much, even exercise, but there are ways around this fear. I’ll talk about this in future post. Now go workout.
Note: The video is of a man that used the P90X program to get fit, real fit.
Exercises have always worked against anxiety and panic attacks. I’ve been pretty busy lately but still thinking to re-join gym classes.