How to Increase Your Results While Decreasing Stress?
Life has become a never-ending stress journey that an individual manoeuvres through every day of life. Nothing can be worse than living a life under a bundle of stress elements that do not prove to be good for health in the long run. It is not just the young generation that feels the burden of stress, but the elderly too. The biggest problem with stress is that your efficiency and productivity starts suffering.
You start forgetting things, your interest in doing things vanishes, and as a result, you tend to love doing nothing other than over thinking. In simple words, you would not even know, but you start sabotaging your happiness. Yet, the surprising fact is that most people do not even know that they have become a victim to stress. Thus it has become the need of the hour to what stress is, how it is affecting you, and how to combat it. Here’s a comprehensive guide that can help you big time when productivity is all that you seek for.
What Is Stress?
It is said,” The load you carry on your mind is not that breaks you, but the way you carry it.” People hear people saying they feel “stressed” on an everyday basis, but do you know what stress really is? Before you feel stressed about not knowing what stress is; let’s make it simple. Whenever you feel that you are under a never-ending tremendous pressure, you are stressed. It’s like so many things are on your mind that you end up sabotaging your peace of mind and contentment.
This stress could be due to your office workload, your usual tradition of over thinking, financial problems, family issues, or even arguments going on in your romantic relationships. Things are likely to build up in your head to the extent that you feel boomed. Everyone has been there at one or the other points in their life.
Now that you know what stress is, let’s discover the symptoms that point at you being a stressful individual.
Common Stress Symptoms
- Lost focus in life
- No urge to try new things
- You smile less often
- Anger and Irritation
- Relying on drugs/alcohol
- You become more of careless
- Diet has reduced big time
- No productivity
- Mood swings more than often
- Change in sleeping patterns
The 1-Step Formula to Deal With Stress
The art of following good habits is one simple thing that can reduce your stress and increase your results while you ditch the act of sabotaging your overall growth. Isn’t that wonderful? You follow a simple habit every day; do a little productive activity, and bingo! The stress would peter out and never come back.
Even studies have shown that the more non-habitual a person is, the more they are found to be stressed. Yes, it is quite challenging to develop a habit, but you can do anything if you believe in you enough. There is some magic about following a strict routine, you have a direction, a set goal, and set priorities.
It is said that if you strictly follow a routine for about 24 days, it becomes a habit naturally. Be it your life at home or at the office, you’ll realize how stress is one thing that is not sabotaging your success. The reason behind this lies in stability that you gain in your life. When you stick to an established routine, you become focused, and with focus come productivity.
What Habits To Follow?
Believe it or not, exercising or what can be called as a fitness routine is the best stress reliever of all. Moving your body is the best way to direct your energy towards increasing your results. No matter what stops you, if you make a will to do it, you’ll certainly reach there!
Exercise not only rejuvenates the body but the mind too. If you think you are too busy to bring the change, you are wrong. Being adamant about not trying to instil positivity would do you no good. Think big, step out of your comfort zone, and enhance productivity while biding adieu to stress.
How Exercising Relieves The Stress?
Everyone knows how exercise keeps one fit and going. But, exercise can also help you manage the stress. You may ask how? Here’s the answer.
- More of Endorphins: When you regularly move your body and keep yourself physically active, the production of endorphins is on the rise. These are the hormones that are secreted in the brain and stimulate psychological functions. Once you start exercising, the production of endorphins would boost and you’ll feel energized and will choose to be in a good mood.
- A Diversion from the Stress: When you find yourself indulging in activities like a nice swim in the pool, or a rejuvenating morning walk, you’ll realize that you have come a long way. All that was bothering and stressing you out has taken a back seat in your head. It is like you have got a fresh mind, and a fresh perspective to direct your thoughts in the right direction.
- The Mood Booster: When stress takes the better of you, it is your happiness that gets affected the most. It is your exercising regime that is the knight in the shining armour that would restore your smile and your soul satisfaction. When you keep yourself active, your mood naturally improves and as a result, you find yourself happy from within. All the symptoms that were telling that you are depressed and stressed fade away in the thin air.
How to Build Your Exercising Routine?
You might ask as to where to start from? How to change your lethargic routine into an active one? How to develop a habit of exercising and stick to it? Well, hold your horses’ folks, while you get a new and a better perspective towards your life.
- Pen down what you like: If you wish to develop good habits, the first step is to jot down what you like. It could be your favourite outdoor sports, walking, bicycling, running, and going to the gym, or anything that keeps you moving. You could also research online as to what exercises and activities can keep your stress at bay.
The next step is to set practical or what is called realistic goals. Set a timetable as to what needs to be done when. You could start by a daily morning walk or a meditation session in the morning, a short walk after you have your lunch or a gym session in the evening. No matter what routine you follow, remember to stick to it!
- Do Not Get Overexcited: Sometimes people tend to get overexcited when they realize how exercising can change their lives. As a result, they overdo their fitness session and get tired too soon or might even injure themselves. This is the wrong way to do things!
Start small; dedicate 15 minutes of your day towards doing physical or mental activities. Then gradually, increase the time you spend on your physical activities, without putting much pressure on the body.
- Meditate: Yes, the best way to get a focus in life is to meditate. It is the stepping stone towards your betterment in every way. Meditation holds the power to restore your peace of mind and sit back and relax. When you get lost in the magic of meditation, nothing else matters.
You’ll feel a sense of contentment that will help you become a better version of yourself. In simple words, when you build a connection with your inner self, your body synchronizes with your soul.
- Join Gym/Yoga Classes: The best way to set a routine is to join a class that you need to attend regularly. When you do all on your own, you may lose interest too soon. The idea is to get going without taking a break. That is why you need to join regular gym/yoga classes and make the most of your time there. The best thing would be to get a friend or your partner along, as it is said, “Two is always a company.”
Another hack is to listen to your favourite music! No matter whether you are brisk walking, or attending a session in the gym; the best would be to listen to your favourite music. It will keep you high and motivated, and your productivity certainly increases.
Manage stress before it manages you and witness how the magic of positivity increases your results.