Time to lace up those shoes and get moving.

by Rachel Linder

Everyone has bad days. Whether you’re suffering from anxiety or depression, you’re stressed at work or you’re overwhelmed by big life choices, you can quickly get to the point where you need to get out of your head. First, let us reassure you that you’re not alone. But, even though everyone goes through feelings like this, not everyone deals with them in the same ways.

We all have our favorite things to do to take a quick breather and help to hit the reset button. But, if you’re looking for something scientifically shown to clear your head, you’re going to want to head outside to take a walk.

Many of us are probably aware of the physical health benefits that come from walking. According to the Mayo Clinic, walking truly does it all from working to build muscles to helping maintain a healthy weight, and even lowering your risk for heart issues and type 2 diabetes. The best thing about walking though? As you begin to walk more and more regularly, the more it improves your overall health.

Even though all those things are great, and you should absolutely see them as enormous benefits—for us, it’s the mental health positives that really should make walking a priority. When it comes to both anxiety and depression, studies have shown walking to have a head-clearing impact that has treatment-like qualities.

Walking has an almost therapeutic effect when it comes to treating worries. Not only will the physical activity release endorphins which is essential to boosting your mood, but by focusing on the walk itself—your breathing in and out, the steps you’re taking, the sights and sounds around you—the less your brain can focus on the anxious thoughts. This is one way that you can start practicing mindfulness, and you’ll begin to see the results as far as it’s mind-clearing abilities almost immediately.

Additionally, a study done by Harvard Health published in JAMA Psychiatry in 2019 found that replacing 1 hour of sitting with 1 hour of moderate walking led to significantly decreased odds of depression. What made the study most compelling, though, was the fact that similar to the physical benefits of walking, the more participants increased their physical activity, the lower their odds were of developing depression.

The moral of the story? Start walking. Even if it’s only for a few minutes a day during your lunch break. Figure out a time that works for your schedule, and just start. Beginning a new routine is always the most difficult part, but once you get started, the impacts it’ll have on your mind will be immeasurable.