What are the Emotional Benefits of Swimming? It’s Super Relaxing
How does swimming help you emotionally, that is, if it does?
Well, in another article, we looked at the benefits of swimming every day. Killer cardio, I tell you. But as it turns out, there are more benefits of swimming daily than just an improved heart rate and lung health.
You can use swimming to improve your mental wellness and health. Okay, swimming is not the miracle drug that can cure everything, but like other exercises, it has incredible benefits.
So how does swimming help with stress and emotions? When you take a dip and several strokes, the body is tricked into thinking that you are happy. Thus, it starts to secrete feel-good hormones such as serotonin and dopamine, the same that the body secretes when you have sex.
When the level of the feel-good hormones in the body rises, the level of the bad hormones, such as cortisol (the stress hormone), goes down. That way, you feel happier. Your anxiety and stress start to dissipate.
How does swimming help with stress?
In the roller-coaster times that we live in today, there are so many triggers of stress and anxiety all around us. Thus, for the sake of your health, we implore you to do everything possible to safeguard your mental health. One of those things is to enjoy the mental benefits of swimming.
Swimming lowers stress
If you have something that is weighing on your mind, just get into your swimming trunks and take a dip in a cold pool.
The coldness of the water will take your mind off everything. However, even if you swim in a warm pool, you will find that this activity is very intensive. It involves every iota of your mind and body.
Try different swimming strokes so that your body can also enjoy weight-loss benefits. As your concentration shifts from your problems to swimming, your mind relaxes. You forget the thing that was weighing on your mind, and you become happier.
Swimming outdoors also helps to relax your mind a great deal.
Swimming can enhance your self-esteem
Just imagine, one of the reasons why people feel stressed emotionally is because they feel so bad about themselves. Now, if you feel bad about something, the best thing to do is to fix it.
So, if you feel bad about your belly fat, start doing something about it. When you swim, you will start to see awesome toning results in 6 to 8 weeks. When you see the physical improvement, you will start to feel quite nice about yourself.
Self-esteem is when you have a very low opinion of yourself. In most cases, it stems from the thoughts in your mind. Maybe you do not like something about yourself. Having too many negative thoughts can give you low self-esteem.
When you experience bouts of low self-esteem, the best thing is to take up something that you love to do. And swimming is quite often the first choice for many people.
Because swimming is also a very social sport, it encourages you to come out of your cocoon and interact with other people.
You will be surprised that only you have those negative thoughts of yourself. Others do not.
Swimming gives you clarity of mind
Did you know that most of the problems that stress our minds do so because we have not had time to de-clutter our minds and think them through?
Well, now you know!
And a session in the swimming pool is just the kind of exercise that you need. Because of its intensity, you have to clear your mind of everything and concentrate on the task at hand.
A dip in the cold water can go a long way in clearing your mind. This will enable you to think clearly. If you feel that your mind is too cluttered, take a swim. It will help take your mind off things.
Swimming is like therapy
Can swimming be therapeutic? In many cases, swimming has been used in the recovery of painful joints. Because of the buoyancy of the water, it helps take the stress off your feet, knees, and other joints.
Swimming does not have physiological benefits, but it also has many mental benefits. First, you interact with other people when you swim. That in itself is therapeutic.
Secondly, you have to forget everything else and concentrate on the present moment. Swimming is what matters at that moment. It forces you to get your mind off things.
Swimming improves your sleep patterns
If you have trouble sleeping, it could be because of the stress and anxiety that you are experiencing. However, swimming can help with that!
If you swim regularly, it will help to improve your sleeping patterns and also give you better sleep quality. It enhances the secretion of endorphins, the same hormones that bring a feeling of joy when you have had sex.
It probably will not improve your sleep quality on the first day. But if you make a habit of swimming daily, you will see that it helps quite a lot.
Most of the stress and anxiety that we experience daily could be washed away with a good, lengthy sleep. Sleep also enhances concentration at work and in school. It also enhances the skin regeneration process as well as tissue repair.
Also check my past articles on:
What does dream of swimming in the ocean mean?
Swimming underwater dream: What does it mean?
Swimming with a yeast infection
Conclusion
So, you now have the answer to the question of how swimming helps you emotionally. You have seen the various benefits that you will enjoy. It is best that you take up this exercise as soon as possible.
The good thing is that you can learn to swim at 40, or at any age! So, you are not too late to start having fun in the water.
The key is to stay consistent until you start experiencing positive results. If you do that, you will find that it is a great reliever of stress, anxiety, and depression.
This does not mean you should not seek professional help. You should. But when you toss while swimming in the picture, you are going to heal much faster.