We all know those people. They show up to class with a light, ethereal sheen of sweat on their forehead, their fixed gear bike in tow. They go for a light jog at lunch and then eat a power bar. Or they bow out after drinks for a quick little jaunt on the elliptical. Sure, they're gym rats and they can be pretty darn annoying. But, they may be onto something when it comes to... wait for it... mental health. Yep, we're going to get you into their camp without having you invest in leg warmers and wristbands. Today on Wellcast, we're going to be talking about exercise. Now, we all know that exercise can help out with our weight, strength, endurance, and flexibility. But, how much do you know about the effects of exercise on the mind? Physically, the benefits of exercise are pretty obvious. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 30 minutes of moderate physical activity per day. The Surgeon General agrees. It'll keep your heart healthy, your weight down, and all systems go. But, the psychological benefits of exercise are actually just as compelling. Physically active people show significantly fewer symptoms of depression than sedentary people. A study done by doctors at the University of Texas Medical Center found that people who exercised 30 minutes per day were almost half as likely to be depressed as people who did not. Exercise also releases endorphins to the brain, creating a sense of well-being. It makes people high on wellness, and it's natural, legal, and it won't give you the munchies. Along with getting you awesomely pumped up on endorphins, exercise increases alpha wave activity to the brain. That's the kind of brain wave that helps you clear your mind and focus. But, now, we've come to a roadblock. To a lot of people, exercise is boring. You don't like getting sweaty. It's uncomfortable. It's not fun. You don't have time. The list goes on. But, that's why we're here. We're going to get you into a brain-clearing, focus-building exercise routine that won't seem too daunting to start. And we're going to get your brain to realize why exercise is essential. Time for our Wellcast journal workout. And we actually mean a physical one this time. First, set aside 30 minutes to workout. That's right. Put on that workout gear of choice. Crank up your music. Get your heart rate up. Get sweaty. Dance around if you need to. Do jumping jacks. Jog in place. Take a break to do a few sit-ups. Nothing too intimidating, though. Okay? After 30 minutes, sit down with your Wellcast journal and write about it. Write about how you felt during the workout. No, not how your body felt. Focus on your mind. Did you have trouble starting? How did you feel in the middle of the workout? At the end? Now, try doing this every day for one week. That's right. Pump iron. Run in place. Do sit-ups. Do those jumping jacks for 30 minutes every day. At the end of the week, write down how your mood has changed within that period. The brain recognizes success when it sees it. Which means the better you feel emotionally after working out, the more likely you are to do it on a semi-regular basis. And then you'll reap all those other physical benefits, too. Let's recap. Everyone knows how exercise has all those physical benefits. But here at Wellcast, we focused only on the mental ones. Anyway, you exercised for 30 minutes, and then you wrote in your journal. Right off the bat, you were probably pretty tired. But when you came back for another journaling session, we want to know how you felt. Did you get any of that focus that all these studies boast about? What about after one week? Let us know how your exercise went.