Easy answer: exercise. That’s almost too easy, right? But here’s the thing, exercise is a great mood booster and it helps you to relieve stress, tension and excess energy – but at the same time, it boosts your energy levels. This is one of those cases where you do get more out of it than what you put in.
Short Walk
A short walk can get your heart rate up and can actually give you a mood and energy boost. Feeling tired and depressed? Hop on the treadmill for ten minutes. Can’t shake the yawns and actually feel yourself fading out in the meetings or at the computer, get up and go for a ten minute brisk walk around the block, it can make all the difference in the world.
Yoga and Weight Lifting
You may not think that yoga is the thing to do for energy boosting, you’d be surprised. Yoga provides a great outlet for toning and energizing and it can also boost your mood because it also relieves tension, increases your flexibility. If you perform yoga regularly, three to four times a week, you will discover that your moods will lift and stay lifted longer and longer.
Weight training offers a similar effect. Power sessions 2 to 3 times a week can release endorphins and increase your mood. There are a number of studies that focus on weight training. Athletes are an example of positive personalities that are constantly on a mood high thanks to their workouts. But be careful, just as any booster can get addictive, so can exercise so don’t over train and cause yourself injury and never turn to drugs as a way of boosting your performance to enhance your mood.
Just Want a Mental Kick for a Bit?
Sometimes we need a mood boost, but we don’t have time to hit the gym or do a quick walk. Practice visualizations that you can do at your desk in less than two minutes. Take a moment to recall something positive in your recent past. It could be a fun family dinner, a great movie you saw or opening presents on Christmas morning. The memory needs to be something that makes you smile.
Music provides us with these mental cues that can draw memories from us, so if you have a song that always gets your feet jumping and your lips curving upwards into a smile, listen to that. Find what boosts your mood and you’ll find yourself turning that frown upside down, clarifying your focus and feeling more positive about your day overall.
What do you do for a mood boost?
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