If you’re looking for a simple way to reduce your stress and anxiety levels, try working on the mind-body connection.
In a recent doctoral study conducted at Pennsylvania State University, Chih-Hslang Yang, PhD investigated the combination of mindfulness and moving on feelings of stress and anxiety. The study, published in Psychology of Sport and Exercise, was conducted on almost 200 Penn State students, where Yang recorded their moods, stress levels and current activities via the Paco app.
Yang also conducted a follow-up study, published in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, to better assess causation with older adults participating in outdoor mindful walking. His findings showed significant reductions in both depression and anxiety, as well as improvements in mindfulness.
Yang discovered that, “When people are both mindful and more active than usual, they seem to have this extra decrease in negative affect,” says Yang. “Being more active in a given moment is already going to reduce negative affect, but [when people are also] more mindful than usual at the same time, you can see this amplified.”
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