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How Do You Get Motivated To Exercise When You Are Depressed?
I asked my TikTok (@thegymstarter) community what they wanted to see on my Blog.
One of the suggestions came from someone who I refer to as:
“My sister from another mister”
I basically grew up with her. We would spend hours together as children playing around, playing dress-up, writing songs, using her video camera to create episodes of Eastenders and make music videos. It was an incredibly fun time, full of honest innocence.
In fact, I don’t think I have one unhappy memory of being looked after by this persons family.
We went to the same school, we went to the same church, and she and her family are as good as my family. We carpooled to school for years and years. Her Mum was a huge inspiration to me with fitness, her Dad with photography.
She had an older sister too. Who is equally a wonderful person.
When we were teenagers we would spend many Friday and Saturday nights out clubbing in Romford together, me trying to make sure they were always ok - I’d drive them both home nearly every week - just to make sure they were safe. I felt loved by them, and we were without doubt as close as close can be.
But with time, we drifted apart. As we grew older and found our voices, found our lives.
And then one day she popped up on my TikTok Feed. And I started seeing videos about much more complex issues around Mental Health and especially Depression. Which made me feel very concerned that someone I loved so much, someone I spent a long time protecting, ratifying whether her Boyfriends passed “The Adam Test” (which was a brutal test that I devised to see whether I thought the bloke was good enough for my sister from another mister), it was hard to see that she had suffered drastically, and it moved me greatly.
She asked me to write this article.
Her exact question was: “Workouts when you’re depressed/neurodivergent”.
To which I had to learn what Neuro Divergent meant, which I now have a grasp on. This also ties in with Mens Health Month, and although I have never been able to grow a Moustache, I think this post is very relevant and I truly hope it helps you.
Firstly, I want to say that you are not alone, you are very very welcome here and if right now you are suffering, and that is what bought you to this article, you are in a safe place. If you need to talk about anything, then please email me on adam@thegymstarter.com - or you can DM me on Instagram - @the_gym_starter
Added to that, we can become friends.
And as your friend, I’ll email you things. Sometimes they will be educational, sometimes they will be inappropriate, sometimes I might just want to know how you are; either way…it would be delightful to connect with you more.
Just send me a friend request by filling out the form below…
Oh, and I will also send you some free fitness goodies to help start our new friendship off on the best foot possible.
Now that we are besties….
I also want to share this with you: I have never had clinical depression, I have never had a diagnosed Mental Health issue, and I am not a Psychologist or Therapist of any kind. That being said, I have definitely had low moods and some very dark moments in my life.
However, the reason I became a Personal Trainer was to help someone who had some Mental Health issues, and I have spent a decade of my life working with people who are clinically depressed and helping them navigate their movement and nutrition as well. I have looked into this topic so many times, and every day I work hard to learn more about it, so that I can help those who are suffering more and more.
This article is a summary of everything I have learnt with working with people who are on medications, are actively suffering and have still managed to work with me - its my blueprint for my Sister from another Mister so that when she gets into a dark place again - she has the framework to help her negotiate everything she wants on what I know best - Movement and Nutrition.
I always say make sure you follow me for empathetic fitness advice with a great smile.
And the only reason I have such a great smile is because of people like you. I see yours, and reflect it back. I hope by seeing mine, you too can see I’m a reflection of you and your smile keeps me inspired every day, even if you can’t see it all of the time.
My greatest memories as a personal trainer are not that of people hitting PBs - its those quiet talks, those moments where I was the only person left for someone to talk to about their issue and how in those moments my clients didn’t have a Personal Trainer - they had a friend.
You’ve got a friend in me. Always and forever. You are not alone. And I will try and help you as much as I can right now.
Table of Contents for: How Do You Get Motivated To Exercise When You Are Depressed? :
Step 1: You are not alone
Step 2: Take away expectation
Step 3: Start small and build from there
Step 4: Acknowledge the wins
Step 5: Have a plan
A note on Neuro-Divergence
Step One: You Are Not Alone
Let us start with some stats [1].
“How common is depression?
More than 264 million people suffer from depression worldwide. (World Health Organization, 2020)
Depression is the leading cause of disability in the world. (World Health Organization, 2020)
Neuropsychiatric disorders are the leading cause of disability in the U.S. with major depressive disorder being the most common. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2013)
Depression statistics in America
17.3 million adults (7.1% of the adult population) have had at least one major depressive episode. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2017)
Of those with major depressive episodes, 63.8% of adults and 70.77% of adolescents had severe impairment. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2017)
Women are nearly twice as likely as men to have depression. (Centers for Disease Control, 2017)
Major depressive episodes were most prevalent among adults (11.3%) and adolescents (16.9%) reporting two or more races. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2017)
Depression statistics by age
Adolescents aged 12 to 17 years old had the highest rate of major depressive episodes (14.4%) followed by young adults 18 to 25 years old (13.8%). (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association, 2018)
Older adults aged 50 and older had the lowest rate of major depressive episodes (4.5%). (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association, 2018)
11.5 million adults had a major depressive episode with severe impairment in the past year as of 2018. (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association, 2018)
Severe depression among college students rose from 9.4% to 21.1% from 2013 to 2018. (Journal of Adolescent Health, 2019)
The rate of moderate to severe depression rose from 23.2% to 41.1% from 2007 to 2018. (Journal of Adolescent Health, 2019)”
I know this doesn’t help you feel like you are not alone if you are in an episode of poor Mental Health. But widening out the context of everything we do in life gives us something that is very important: Perspective.
And when it comes to Movement and Motivation perspective is one of the single most effective things you can have to make you feel like you aren’t failing.
We live in a very false world. We live in a world where highlights are everything and only promoting the best of life is what matters - what is valued.
But look at the stats. That isn’t life.
Life is a complex tapestry of emotions and humanity. And tapestries are beautiful. You are woven into the fabric of society, which is what makes our society great. You don’t darken the doorway with your presence, you light it up - you light it up by the sheer fact you are here - living and breathing.
Do you know what the chances are of your existence?
This is mind-blowing. The answer is 1 in 10 to the power of 265,000,000. That’s a 10 with 256 million zeros after it.
The best analogy I found was this: It is the probability of 2 million people coming together, to each roll a dice with a trillion sides on it, and they all get the same number.
The chances of your existence are basically zero. This means you are a miracle. This means we are all miracles together and that’s what makes the world awesome.
Even if we don’t feel like a miracle all of the time - we are. It doesn't change the facts. What does change is our interpretation of the facts.
And what happens when two miracles get together? Magic. Magic is what happens. When you talk to someone, when you process your feelings through discussion and perspective you create magic.
Step 2: Take Away Expectation
In a paper called: “On the Maintenance of Expectations in Major Depression – Investigating a Neglected Phenomenon” [2] which was published in 2017, they propose:
“For major depressive disorder (MDD), there is evidence that people suffering from MDD hold situation-specific dysfunctional expectations which may be elicited by depressive core beliefs (Kube et al., 2016)”
They go on to conclude that;
“The maintenance of expectations despite experiences that are contrary to expectations is believed to be a core feature of MDD”
Huh.
Now that is interesting.
Expecting something, that lived experience doesn’t equate is a “core feature of MDD”.
I see this every day in Fitness. I see the perpetual cycle of people feeling like failures because their lived perception of what fitness is, is so wildly misguided compared to lived reality.
It’s also something I have come to learn over time as a Personal Trainer - and making sure that the first thing I do with new clients on the Strong & Confident Program is quite simply to manage those expectations immediately.
Because I don’t want my clients lived experiences to make them feel like a failure.
I do not mean to trivialise your struggle, by simply stating that your learned expectations are the issue you are facing, and it is as simple as letting go of those expectations. Because those expectations can be very deeply rooted in who you are as a person. Added to that a huge part of your mental health does come down to Chemistry - which has nothing to do with expectation.
But I know I can influence these thoughts through the window of what this article is about: Fitness and Motivation.
What Expectations Should You Remove from your Fitness Journey?
Expectation 1: Thinking it will be the same process as your friends experience
Here comes the quote….
“Comparison is the thief of joy”
I understand that knowing this is one thing - being able to execute a whole other - and if you ar in the midst of an Mental Health Episode then its even harder.
Aside from making love, fitness is one of the most personal experiences you will probably have. Not only your physical ability and skill, your genetics, but also your emotional resonance with what fitness is in your life.
The number one joy out of fitness is the fact that you get to explore it, the fact that is your personal journey and the fact that you are the only person you should be doing it for.
So as easy as it is for me to say don’t compare yourself to others, the only way in which you can do that is to focus on the self - focus on your productivity, focus on what you are able to do, focus on what you can achieve and focus on what wins you are picking up along the way.
And I’m not talking about Squatting 100kgs.
I’m simply talking about the real world wins each day. The real world wins that can so often elude you at periods of time in your life when you feel this way.
Then you begin to build a foundation. A foundation of strength, a foundation of habit, a foundation of persistence - and it is from that foundation, from the feedback loop of what you are achieving, no matter what it is compared to others, that you can then build other behaviours that you want to see yourself doing.
This foundation is your insulation from these episodes of poorer mental health being more severe the next time they come around.
Expectation 2: Endorphins “being the answer”
Exercise has the ability to make you feel better about yourself.
But it doesn't necessarily mean that it is the only answer.
Exercise improves your sense of well-being, and releases these things known as endorphins, which help alleviate pain in the Brian similar to Morphine.
But you shouldn't put all of your eggs in one basket - despite what Resse Witherspoon thinks.
When I hear something like:
“Exercise makes you happy and releases endorphins and therefore helps with depression”
Although Scientifically I know it to be true, if I was going through a bout of low mood, | would then expect the high of exercise to be so good - because it’s all anyone seems to bang on about all the damn day long.
And that’s not really what happens.
Of course, I believe in the power of movement to help all people - I am an award-winning Online Coach and Personal Trainer.
But I know that what happens after a workout is certainly not as big a high as the marketing would make you believe. It’s subtle, but a very real sense of accomplishment. It’s a little tick in your day that makes you say to yourself - good job - what’s next?
And the more you repeat the cycle, the more good jobs you get done. The more ticks you put in your wins column, the more you build that strong foundation that insulates you from your future self.
Expectation 3: Your definition of a Workout
What is a workout?
Well, I chose to show you, Mike - because who doesn't love Monsters Inc - it is the greatest Disney Pixar film there is.
But also - when searching “workout” on Giphy I saw far too many toxic images of what a workout is - and I didn’t want to perpetuate that stigma.
When you look at the origin of where the word comes from, you have to break it into two sections:
Section 1: Work - As a noun, it is thus [3]:
“Activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result”
“A task or tasks to be undertaken”
When I first read this definition I was worried about the words “purpose or result”. As in, it would take you towards thinking about “losing 5kgs” or behaviours that perpetuate negative body image and procrastination towards yourself.
But in truth, a purpose or result can simply be - to move, to walk, to enjoy. A result can be a process-driven result, nay, it should be a process-driven result.
Not a goal-based result.
Section 2: Out - As an adverb, it is thus [4]:
“Moving or appearing to move away from a particular place, especially one that is enclosed or hidden”
Therefore, if you look at a workout as a physical effort to move you away from a place that is enclosed or hidden you can quantify a workout as anything that achieves that.
As in, it doesn’t have to be lifting heavy weights and slaying yourself in a gym packed with mirrors that make you feel even worse about yourself.
It can simply be the physical act of moving from Point A to Point B.
A common dialogue in the conversation about depression is that those who are suffering find it hard enough to even shower, let alone do much else. Well moving from Point A (your bed) to Point B (your shower) can be viewed as a workout.
And when you can reframe it thus, you can begin to build momentum.
You can begin to build those strong foundations I keep discussing with regards to putting ticks in your win column.
Added to this the term workout has only been around 100 years or so. It is also thought that the “out” part of the word comes from the meaning of “outside” [5].
Hence going for a walk…is a workout; It produces a physical effort towards a goal.
That goal being, to go outside.
What I am trying to do here is lower the barrier of entry for you. Help you reframe the mammoth task right now of finding the motivation to exercise. Making the leap from a low mood to a Gym is huge.
Making the leap from a low mood to getting outside for a walk, might be less huge.
And actually going outside has been shown many times over to have huge benefits on mood [6].
Step 3: Start Small And Build From There
Nothing builds confidence more than showing up for yourself regularly and always ticking off the things you want to do.
Talk to anyone who has accomplished anything large in their life, and they will all tell you the same thing:
“It’s the daily habits inside and out that create big effort”
Whether you’re an athlete training for the Olympics, a Dancer stretching, a musician doing their Arpeggio’s or, take it from me, an actor showing up to over 1000 auditions just to get a job.
Make no mistake, insulating yourself, building these big foundations that will support you in the future, these strategies and assurances in your life to help you deal with low mood when it comes around again is a big effort
And therefore, to achieve that you must build slowly and surely.
Breaking a big effort into bite-size chunks is the best way to go - because the bigger the task the more likely you are to procrastinate around it.
I remember when I had to put my Visa Application together for Australia - it turned out to be a 75-page document outlining every fact and figure to prove that I was in a genuine and ongoing relationship to the exclusivity of all others with my fiancee.
And you would think that sounds quite straightforward - but actually proving the fact to someone who has never seen you, spoke to you or knows anything about you other than seeing the 75-page document, to also prove enough evidence so that you aren’t being fraudulent is a very very scary task.
And boy did I put it off.
Not because I didn’t believe it possible - but because of how daunting the whole thing was - and the more I thought trying to get it done quickly the more I delayed taking action.
I had to just focus on it one request at a time.
Put a system and a framework in place - and go from there.
Much like when I ran the London Marathon.
Look at how young I look - even still at 20 miles in.
When I ran that marathon, I had to reverse engineer my journey. I had to look at the final goal - which for me was completing a Marathon - and then figure with about a years notice how to work towards it.
It started with running 5kms, then 10kms, then 15kms, then 20kms…until Race Day.
It wasn’t a linear journey either. Some days when I had to run 15kms I could only do 10km or 5km, I had to appreciate how much energy my body had, and respond in the moment to it, understanding that within the framework of my rather large and overwhelming training plan, I had to appreciate the flexibility I needed within it.
I remember two very distinct occasions within this journey as well.
One was when I was sitting in the bath, battered and beaten physically and emotionally because I tried to run at a pace for a four-hour marathon over a 20km distance, and I just couldn’t do it. I had nothing in me that was strong enough to keep that up - and I was feeling really rubbish about everything. I got on the phone to one of my very good friends and wonderful running coach, James, and ,made me realise that the only person putting me under this pressure to run that goal was me - and the sooner I disassociated with that as a goal, the more enjoyable my training would be.
I never looked back.
And the second time, was in the build-up to the race - I was quite worried about a month away from that I would hurt myself running, and I knew I had put in enough work - maybe not the most, and I certainly could have done a lot more, but I suffered a rough injury in training when I was also refereeing, and I just went into protection mode - and didn’t run in the build-up to the marathon.
I was overwhelmed with the thoughts of how big the task ahead was - so I withdrew.
Even having done the work.
This is perfectly normal - the pre-game nerves, the stage fright, the anxiety this can cause. A rebound of emotions is normal - which is why it is so important to have the feedback of little behaviours that have led you to this moment to support you.
So that, when you get stopped in your tracks with these feelings, you also can look back and say “I have a body of evidence contrary to what my brain is telling me right now” - and no one can take that work away from me.
STEP 4: Acknowledge The Wins
Each week on the Strong and Confident Program I send out a Weekly Report form to my clients.
And it serves two purposes.
To give them a moment to reflect on what has passed, and set themselves up for the week commencing - again focussing them onto the process rather than the goal.
To get them to physically write down and celebrate the wins they have built up over the week.
And when they put something on there that they haven’t mentioned to me before, I get very wound up. Because when the big wins come I expect a text message.
Just like this one from my friend who is three weeks into her journey with me:
Then when they have a moment of self-doubt, provided they have filled in the form each week, we have a body of evidence to show them that they are able to achieve.
I can show them that they have built the foundations.
I can prove to them, that they themselves wrote words contrary to what their thoughts are at the moment, and that this moment will pass, as it always does with time, and they will soon be able to get back to nailing their journey.
Wins are so easily looked over, whereas what are perceived failures are so easily focussed on and so easily fixated on.
This is why, writing down your wins, talking to a Coach about your wins, taking a moment to track your stats, and ticking off your consistency is all really really important.
What you see more of, the brain focuses on more and more. You get a feedback loop akin to what you are being exposed to.
And this feedback loop can be used both positively and negatively.
If all you see are size 10 models with perfect skin due to photoshop on Instagram, it's going to make you think that is normal life, and therefore create an unrealistic expectation of yourself - hence creating a negative feedback loop.
Therefore you need to take every opportunity to make note of your wins. Make note of your achievements and celebrate them.
No matter how small they seem in comparison to anything else.
Your wins are personal to you - it's irrelevant what others are achieving - they are your wins and it’s your journey - that is all that matters.
You can do this in a number of ways but for someone who has a low mood, I think the best way to record your wins would be through journaling.
Journalling has been shown to reduce anxiety and depression.
In this study [7] they took 40 people who were diagnosed with current MDD and asked them to expressively write about their deepest thoughts and feelings for 20mins a day, and four weeks later they showed decreases in depression scores measured by the Beck Depression Inventory and Patient Health Questionnaire.
This study called: “The effect of expressive writing on the error-related negativity among individuals with chronic worry” found results very similar buy using expressive writing to help reduce worry and stress in those who engaged with it.
Writing your feelings down, helps you process them. Writing your wins down helps you acknowledge them.
And once those two things are happening, then the foundations again grow stronger.
STEP 5: Have A Plan
Nothing builds confidence more than showing up for yourself and not letting yourself down.
One way to ensure that is a much more foolproof system is by having a plan to execute, a format to stick to.
By knowing what you are going to do, it will make the execution of what you are going to do a lot easier.
Again, it lowers the barrier of entry to the task - and the lower you can get that barrier, the easier the execution will be.
The plan doesn’t have to be overwhelming, it doesn’t have to be for the rest of your life or even the year.
In fact, I would argue the smaller the plan the better.
It can be a plan just for that day.
It can be a plan just for your movement session.
It can be as simple as you need it to be, to avoid overwhelm and procrastination around it.
Write down a few exercises you want to investigate in your movement. Write down how long you want to stay at the Gym for, and make sure you plan yourself accordingly for it.
The objective here is to make sure that it is so easy, its nearly impossible for you to back down.
One plan I like to use with clients is the two-minute rule. Especially when they are struggling. I got the two-minute rule from James Clears amazing book “Atomic Habits”.
Over to James [9]:
“The Two-Minute Rule states “When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.”
You’ll find that nearly any habit can be scaled down into a two-minute version:
“Read before bed each night” becomes “Read one page.”
“Do thirty minutes of yoga” becomes “Take out my yoga mat.”
“Study for class” becomes “Open my notes.”
“Fold the laundry” becomes “Fold one pair of socks.”
“Run three miles” becomes “Tie my running shoes.”
The idea is to make your habits as easy as possible to start. Anyone can meditate for one minute, read one page, or put one item of clothing away. And, as we have just discussed, this is a powerful strategy because once you’ve started doing the right thing, it is much easier to continue doing it. A new habit should not feel like a challenge. The actions that follow can be challenging, but the first two minutes should be easy. What you want is a “gateway habit” that naturally leads you down a more productive path.”
Back to me;
Once you have broken your habit down to a two-minute action, you can build from there. If you have mindfully done a “two-minute rule” you are a lot more likely to execute away from that point. And if you don’t, you still did the action for two minutes.
If you want a plan for the Gym I have two free offerings for you.
Offering 1: 10-minute Workouts:
I have an 8-week system, which I will send to you for free that is a series of 10min workouts. I originally wrote this for very busy mums who just didn’t have the time to workout at a Gym, and needed a no weights home system to just rack up the habit - it was really effective when I launched it.
It’s called The Beginners Bodyweight Workout Guide.
If you would like this free offering then please click here.
Offering 2: The Confident and Strong 4-Week Workout Manual
This is an In-Gym or At-Home solution for a month. Workouts are a little longer than 10 minutes, but to complete the program you just need 4 weeks. Every workout is written for you, and you can interchange the Gym solution or the Home solution depending on your circumstances. It is a complete workout manual that is designed to lower that barrier of entry and show you that movement can be effective in any situation.
Added to that after each workout it has a section where you are asked to give gratitude for the workout, and you can use that as your Journal as well.
If you would like The Confident and Strong Program 4-Week Workout Manual for free then click here
A Note on Neuro-Divergence
I didn’t know what this was until I got the question on TikTok from my sister from another mister.
But the term neurodivergent “refers to the concept that certain developmental disorders are normal variations in the brain. And people who have these features also have certain strengths.
Besides ADHD, neurodiversity commonly refers to people with:
Dyslexia
Dyspraxia
Other learning disabilities” [10]
As I am not a specialist in any aspect of these developmental disorders I can’t comment medically on how best to balance these with fitness and movement.
But I can give you my best opinion on it.
The way I see this is that people who are Neurodivergent have a special natural advantage that they can exploit.
Think of your divergence as a superpower.
And feel free to forget the standards that you hear about fitness because they may very often be antithetical to your divergence.
The fitness industry is still very behind in terms of adapting and making the space a suitable place to exist for people with disabilities. Heck, we are still a long way behind in making it an open space for people who have higher weight bodies.
But we are getting better.
Therefore it comes as no surprise to me, the accessibility to information for those who are Neurodivergent isn’t exactly there.
For example, traits of someone with ADHD are:
being unable to sit still, especially in calm or quiet surroundings
constantly fidgeting
being unable to concentrate on tasks
excessive physical movement
excessive talking
being unable to wait their turn
acting without thinking
interrupting conversations
little or no sense of danger [11]
Some of these can be leaned into in terms of your movement. If your ADHD presents as constantly fidgeting, then maybe design a workout where you perform Tri-Sets (3 exercises back to back before rest periods) or perform larger circuits than normal to minimise rest periods.
If you find it hard to concentrate, then it might be wise to just aim to go to the Gym for 20 minutes more frequently, rather than try to be there for an hour and you exceed your capacity.
If your ADHD presents as little or no sense of danger, maybe consider going with a friend, and just ask them to keep an eye on you, as you don’t want to injure yourself, or get some sessions with a Personal Trainer so you can safely test your maximums and then know to work within those.
A common trait of people who are Dyslexic is that they can perceive visual information better than those without the condition. Therefore the Gym could be a marvellous place for them to explore their body through space and before each exercise as opposed to focusing on trying to track numbers and read books on working out, it might be a good idea to work towards making your lifts look better visually. Prepare yourself by looking at “optimal form” videos and show progress to yourself by working towards replicating that.
My point is that there are no set rules.
Fitness has guidelines, but the most important guideline is that you work in a manner that you find inspiring for yourself. The more you work against yourself, the harder fitness is full stop. So learn to manipulate fitness to your needs and how you need it to operate in your life.
Use your superpower to your advantage.
Rip up the rule book.
In the same we amend certain movement patterns to peoples ability so that they can get the most out of what they are doing, you also have the power to amend fitness to suit you.
Make your movement something that works for you, in your life, in your way.
That's all any of us ever do - and is the ultimate goal no matter who you are.
Did You Find This Useful?
Firstly I want to say a huge thank you for reading my article. If you are currently in a low mood or depression and are looking to use exercise as a way of helping you manage it, then I can tell you from my experience of working with people in this manner, physical movement is a phenomenal way of processing your emotions physically - in the same way Journalling is a great way of processing your emotions mentally.
I hope this has helped you feel like the bar can be lowered, so that you can see yourself being able to move and using it as a tool to manage your Mental Health in the future.
And of course, if you need to talk to anyone about your mental health then please see your Doctor or call one of the many many many fantastic charities in your country that can help you.
Across this website, I have other Articles all about managing your mental health through movement:
I would also love to invite you to grab some free fitness goodies from me, including a free month of coaching on The Strong and Confident Program
You also have a unique opportunity to grab some fitness goodies from me as a thank you for reading this article…to find out how…read more below:
Thank you so much for reading my article - I really hope you found it helpful.
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References:
SingleCare Team | Updated on Jan. 21, Team, S.C. & Team, S.C., 2021. Statistics about depression in the U.S. The Checkup. Available at: https://www.singlecare.com/blog/news/depression-statistics/ [Accessed November 21, 2021].
Kube T, Rief W, Glombiewski JA. On the Maintenance of Expectations in Major Depression - Investigating a Neglected Phenomenon. Front Psychol. 2017;8:9. Published 2017 Jan 18. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00009
OED Definition of “Work”
OED Definition of “Out”
Anon, Workout word origin. Etymologeek. Available at: https://etymologeek.com/eng/workout [Accessed November 22, 2021].
Anon, 16/10/2016 green is good for you. Available at: http://www.unature.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Green-is-good-for-you.pdf [Accessed November 12, 2021].
Krpan, K.M. et al., 2013. An everyday activity as a treatment for depression: The benefits of expressive writing for people diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Journal of Affective Disorders. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165032713004448 [Accessed November 24, 2021].
Schroder, H.S., Moran, T.P. & Moser, J.S., 2017. The effect of expressive writing on the error‐related negativity among individuals with chronic worry. Wiley Online Library. Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/psyp.12990 [Accessed November 24, 2021].
Anon, 2020. How to stop procrastinating by using the "2-Minute Rule". James Clear. Available at: https://jamesclear.com/how-to-stop-procrastinating [Accessed November 24, 2021].
Wiginton, K., What is neurodiversity? WebMD. Available at: https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/features/what-is-neurodiversity [Accessed November 24, 2021].
Anon, NHS choices. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd/symptoms/ [Accessed November 24, 2021].
How Can College Students Stay Fit and Healthy?
Out of the blue…well sort of…I was approached to write an article for Platform which is the Student Paper at Nottingham Trent University.
To say this is an honour for me is an understatement and the position that students find themselves in throughout the UK at the moment due to the Global Pandemic I really hope this will help them right now….but also long into the future.
In this article, I hope to be able to give you a plan, an understanding and a guide that helps students not just at Nottingham Trent University, but throughout the world, to help you figure out to keep fit and healthy and look after yourselves as students, but also for the rest of your lives.
Table of Contents for “How Can College Students Stay Fit and Healthy?”
Who is The Gym Starter?
How To Manage Food on a Budget
How To Workout in a Dorm Room
How Can Exercise Help Your Mental Wellbeing As A Student
Parting Advice for Students
Who Is The Gym Starter?
My real name is Adam, or Coach Adam. I have a congenital heart disease, used to live in London, but now live on the Gold Coast, Australia with my beautiful fiancee.
My University experience was a little different to yours, as I went to a Drama School in London and trained to be an Actor., which meant I hads to 12 hours a day 6 days a week for the best part of three years to get my degree.
I did more hours at University in a day than one of my friends did in a week at Lectures as he was studying a Computer Gaming degree.
So I suppose you’re thinking, how can someone who hasn’t been a typical student, tell me, a student, how to look after myself?
Well I suppose I have lived on tight budgets and eating Beans On Toast for the best part of the last 15 years of my life, as Acting is hardly a lucrative business, and I have spent the best part of my life since graduating working 6 jobs just to get food on my table.
I worked as:
A Personal Trainer
An Actor
A Theatre School Director
A Semi-Professional Referee
A Washer Upper
A Staffing Support Assistant at the ExCel Centre
I know what it is like to be time poor, have deadlines and the pressures of workign every which way and never feeling like you have time to yourself. I also know what it is like to have very little control over your food intake, and to be so exhausted both mentally and physically that the last thing I wanted to do was workout.
And even still I struggle, even though my life has somewhat settled. I now work in an amazing Personal Training Studio here on the Gold Coast, I am still pursuing my Acting and just love helping people figure out this crazy little thing called life.
I became The Gym Starter because I have always loved helping people feel confident about themselves…and I have noticed since the upsurge of Social Media, confidence seems to be a personality trait that is becoming more and more scarce in the world, especially amongst our College Student population.
The constant comparison of what you see on Instagram compared to real life, the constant desire to live up to what you create and the sheer awful information and lies that exist in places like Instagram and TikTok are not helping students enter and exist in reality in such a crucial moment in your lives when you need confidence the most.
Being a student at College is scary. Away from home. Meeting lots and lots of new people. Taking independent responsibility for your study. A lot of time to kill. Being poor financially. Let alone trying to keep fit and healthy as well.
Its terrifying. I remember the imposter syndrome and the constant checking of the bank balance well.
The awkward phone call home asking for another tenner because you had to pay for your grocery deliver this week.
The last thing you need is feeling inadequate about your health and fitness too.
All because of Social Media.
So I’m here to help you. To give you a real perspective on what you should reasonably expect.
And to hopefully take away some of the anxiety you are feeling in terms of your health and fitness as a student…especially in 2021…global pandemic and all.
So take a moment.
Big Deep breath.
In for 10….
Out for 10….
My very first point stands as this: I cannot tell you to get healthy. I am a Personal Trainer, not a Doctor, and am not here to discuss your Health. Health is very different for everyone, and the markers for each person vary greatly.
What I can say is that movement, eating certain foods, and using my advice to look after yourself might indeed make you feel a lot better about yourself. There is a correlation between what I discuss and how that might improve health in certain people, but it is no guarantee.
What I can guarantee is I will make you feel a lot better about how you are living your life, how you are using your body and your energy levels in general, as well as your improved mood. If you deem that as being healthier…that’s up to you. Not me.
How To Manage Food On A Budget
This isn’t an easy topic, as we all have very different budgets to live in with our food.
And I would suggest you are doing a pretty good job at this point if you are still alive.
There is a common thread in society that eating “healthy” is more expensive, and this is true [1].
But that doesn’t mean that you can’t do things to help yourself in this department.
Here are my top 5 tips for eating on a budget:
Buy Frozen Fruits and Vegetables - especially Vegetables. Too many times in my life have I gone to the fridge to find the Courgette I forgot about and now it is rotten to the core. You don’t need to worry about whether they have enough a nutrient profile or not, it’s a daft argument that shouldn’t exist because it creates a needless barrier to entry. Eating any Vegetables will help you, frozen or otherwise. But Frozen Vegetables are often easier to weigh out if you need to measure your food, They are really simple to cook…just put them in a Wok, and away you go…and they taste just lovely. The other huge advantage to these is that they are bulky foods. They will fill you up for longer than a Dominos Pizza meaning you will spend less money overall on food.
Side Note: If you are a “fussy” eater, or simply “don’t eat vegetables” then it’s a hard truth, but you need to start working on that. To simply say you don’t eat vegetables is absurd because all Vegetables have different tastes and different textures. Taste Buds regenerate over time, and the more you expose yourself slowly to something you dislike the more you will develop a taste for it. Just like when you didn’t like the taste of beer and coffee when you were younger…now it seems to be rather lovely. Stop being lazy with Vegetables. It might be that you were indulged too much in your childhood, and now you are now paying the cost of that as an adult. An adult that doesn’t eat any Vegetables is simply ignorant (unless they suffer from very particular digestive issues).
2. Plan Your Meals Weekly, and budget for them - spend some time sitting down creating a two-week meal plan for yourself. That way you can easily budget for what you ate going to eat as well. A big problem with finance in terms of food is the desire to always be eating something different. Many of my friends who I work with online are advised to eat the same foods time and time again for a number of reasons. They know the nutritional profile of the food (Calories, Protein, Carbohydrate and Fat content) as well as the fact it is financially better for them. When you have a plan and stick to it, it will help you so much to manage your money. You don’t need as much variety in the foods you eat as you think you do. We all eat on average the same 8 or 9 meals, especially when we are cooking from home.
3. Eat out Less Often - sounds so simple right? But I am aware of how hard this is to do in reality. The Costa Coffee isn’t so much of an issue… its the Muffin and Toasted Sandwich that comes from the trip too, before you know it, a Mocha Chocca Skinny Vanilla Three Shot Latte (or whatever the kids are drinking these days) plus a Muffin and a Tuna Toastie has cost you £15. Added to that…its’s cost in terms of how much it will fill you up as well, combined with the number of calories you are consuming all in one go. It’s just not that wise. If you are going for a coffee…which I am a huge fan of…then make sure it is just a Coffee you order.
4. Buy In Bulk - especially your Carbohydrates. Buy big packs of Rice and Pasta. They will last forever and are so much cheaper than buying the Microwave packs that Uncle Ben makes. In the food industry, there is always a higher cost associated with convenience.
5. Spend Time Cooking - if you don’t know how to cook…learn. It really doesn’t have to be that complex. Every day for lunch when I was at Drama School I used to cook fried eggs and beans on toast. It was better for me than eating at Subway, it was cheaper for me than eating at Subway and it had a much better nutrient profile than eating at Subway. And it took about the same amount of time as going to Subway. We live in a world where cooking is really intimidating. For many years I was great at executing a gourmet meal, but when it came to just cooking everyday food that wasn’t Instagram worthy, because it was just normal food, I didn’t know what to do. What you see on the Internet isn’t the real world. There is nothing wrong with a few sausages, some mashed potato, and some frozen veggies on a plate…you just don’t think there is because it doesn’t look good enough for yout IG Story.
How To Workout In A Dorm Room
Right now, during a Global Pandemic and everlasting lockdowns, I’m not sure you need my advice on how to workout in a Dorm Room.
There are certain times in a person’s life where working out just isn’t feasible, and putting yourself under more and more pressure to live up to an outcome that you don’t need to live up to will have a wider negative effect on you.
I’d never force someone to work out if they are grieving.
Or are stressed to the eyeballs with work and worry about a loved one.
There are times when it is ok to say - actually - I just am not going to work out, and that’s ok.
I have recently moved to Australia and had to do a Two Week Quarantine in a single Hotel Room. I had the intention to workout. I had my TRX with me. But I didn’t work out as much as I hoped to, and there is nothing wrong with that. The room and my personal circumstances didn’t provide me with the energy I needed to workout.
And I’m fine with that.
And if that is you…you should be fine with that too.
I would also love for you to reconsider what you think a workout should be. You probably do not have a Leg Press Machine in your Dorm Room, so it’s just daft to have the same expectations of a workout, that you would have if you had access to a Gym Floor.
Meditation can be a workout.
Yoga can be a workout.
10 Push Ups can be a workout.
A walk can be a workout.
What I am trying to say is that it doesn’t all have to be Deadlifts and Dumbells - you need to have greater empathy for yourself and what you can achieve.
And this isn’t just true when you are in the midst of a Global Pandemic. This is true when you are up to your eyeballs in Dissertations and Essays. This is true when you are working, studying, and living on top of trying to keep fit.
Sometimes in life, it’s more important to take 4 or 5 steps back…so that you can then take another 10 forward further down the track.
Managing your stress is indeed a workout.
But if you are the type of person who is chomping at the bit to do something physical besides what I have laid out above then my top recommendation to you is the following.
Get a Suspension Trainer. Not a TRX - they are far too expensive for what they are…and you don’t have the funds.
$25 (about £14.99) on Amazon.com.au you can get a Suspension Trainer or at Decathlon its the same price.
The Suspension Trainer was designed by a Navy Seal who wanted to be able to work out in any environment he found himself in. Especially small spaces.
And they are just blooming wonderful.
Then you can do these workouts:
Please feel free to amend the workouts as you see fit to your ability level.
I always write online programs to an RPE Scale to gauge intensity as opposed to dictating how much weight, as I have never met you, and then Reps and Sets as we all are slightly different in this regard. . If you want to increase your decrease your intensity then change the Reps or timings as you see fit.
For more information on the RPE Scale head to this article: How To Plan and Design A Home Workout - The Ultimate Guide
If you can’t get a Suspension Trainer then you can get my free book: The Beginners Bodyweight Workout Guide
The book has 56 Workouts you can do…all bodyweight based…all just 10mins a day too!
How Does Exercise Help Your Mental Health?
Every Personal Trainer in the world will sit here and advocate the benefits of exercise for your mental health.
They will then also try and sell you detox teas, show you very thin bodies as the ideal or simply tell you to “Eat Less, Move More”
Which completely undoes the benefit to your mental health.
Movement in and of itself will make you feel better about who you are, but when you start aligning that behaviour with behaviours of weight loss for acceptance amongst your peers, or to try and get a six-pack or even so that you can get laid…
A problem begins to occur.
Suddenly your movement is no longer beneficial for your mental health, suddenly it is a punishment for it.
So to gain the advantages for your Mental Wellbeing in association with fitness and movement you must make sure that you are focussing on your movement for reasons beyond superficiality.
There are many, many, many outcomes in fitness that will not lead to improved Mental Health and can send you into much poorer places with that.
And these nearly always come down to a number of factors:
Desperation: “I must lose weight in 3 months”
Pressure: “I must weight 3 stone less to feel normal”
Self Acceptance: “He will never like me if I’m not skinny”
Self Worth: “I can’t look at myself until I weight X amount”
When you are engaging in physical activity to try and “fix” something akin to what I have laid out above…you will experience much poorer mental health as a result.
Because what you desire will never come quick enough.
Fitness is a stubborn thing, that takes discipline, hard work and consistency. So much so I don’t feel like I have ever truly mastered anything in my fitness because I always fall down on these pillars.
But I am also not under any pressure to achieve any of the outcomes above.
The reason movement helps your mental health is quite well known at this point:
Can improve your confidence
Can improve cognitive function
Can send you into a productive state
Can give you a sense of achievement
Can teach you discipline
Can help change your outlook on life
But what I really think is true about how Movement and Fitness can aid your mental health is that it makes you creative.
I have written a 2000-word article on the topic for you, and that makes me feel amazing.
Makes me feel creative. When you shape and craft a workout and then execute it, it gives you a creative outlet that all humans need.
And the best bit?
There really isn’t a high barrier of entry. You don’t have to be able to be a musician or a painter.
You don’t have to be a singer or a wordsmith.
You just have to be a human.
And guess what…you are one.
So you can already be extremely creative with your movement and your body, enjoy the benefits of movement for your confidence, for your cognitive function and for your productivity…
And then your mental health will improve.
Get into Fitness to be creative.
For as long as that is the beating drum of why you are doing what you are doing…
Especially during a pandemic…
Then you will fly my friend.
What’s Next?
Across this website, I have other Articles all about managing your physical and nutritional health:
Added to that it would be AMAZING if you joined my free Facebook Group.
It is called Straightforward Fat Loss.
I do one Live Training a week in there based on topics which are designed to make your Fat Loss Journey as straightforward as possible.
It would be so wonderful to see you in there…to join just click on the button below and you will by transported at the speed of light to a grateful and welcoming bunch of people who really do just want to help everyone as much as they can.
Thank you so much for reading my article. I hope it has helped you…
Speak again soon,
Coach Adam
References:
Jones NRV, Conklin AI, Suhrcke M, Monsivais P (2014) The Growing Price Gap between More and Less Healthy Foods: Analysis of a Novel Longitudinal UK Dataset. PLoS ONE 9(10): e109343. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109343
I've Been Dealing With Imposter Syndrome My Entire Life
Have you ever heard the phrase:
“Jack of all trades…Master of none”
Well, that’s me. Or rather that’s what my own brain thinks of me. I think it’s also the story I have been told throughout my life as well.
I have done many things:
Worked as a Magician
Worked as an Actor
Been a Semi-Pro Soccer Referee
Worked in Finance
Worked as a Personal Trainer
Worked as a Marketer
Worked as a Voice Over Artist
Worked as a Sports Writer
Worked as a Film Producer
Worked as a Stage Manager
Been CEO of a Theatre School Company
A lot of things and I’m only 33 years old. In and of themselves they have all had success. They have all bought me happiness and an element of fulfillment. But, except for Personal Training, none of them have ever met up to Society’s norms of success for their field.
I was always that likable kid. But never THE kid. I would always be third or fourth last from getting picked for the playground football team. I remember at College we had a students vs teachers Basketball game. I made the bench. I played for a total of 7 minutes.
Let’s look at my High School Grades; I got straight B’s in 12 subjects.
I joined a Cricket Team. I was only ever trusted to Bowl to the 11th Batsman…and was known as the “That fielder guy”.
At Drama School, I graduated with a 2:1. My biggest achievement there was Olly Gomm saying to me: “You had a great third year. I really thought you would get a 1st”
Olly got a 1st. Alas, I didn’t. I’m not a “1st kind of guy”.
I was also told at Drama School from my head of acting that my roles in the profession would be; I can remember Annie saying it to me now, “Rodney from Only Fools and Horses, Adam, you’re the best friend, the guy next door”
I’m a steady hand. The middle of the road. The guy you can rely on. I’m Benvolio, not Romeo. I’m Rosencrantz, not Hamlet. I’m Fabian, not Sir Andrew Aguecheek.
FYI…Fabian is the best part I have ever played.
I do have some achievements in my life; I was Head Boy at school, which is no mean feat, but so was Alex Hocking the straight-A student who I always played second fiddle to in the eyes of my peers and teachers (not Alex, he’s a lovely man).
I got into Drama School at 18 years of age. That is pretty much unheard of. But what it did to me was pretty rough, as I was one of the youngest, one of the most in-experienced actors in the year and felt well out of my depth for at least 2 years of my 3 years at Drama School.
I tell you all of this not because it’s fun to list my minor achievements and failures, but because understanding the person I am, and the narrative that has been throughout my life as the “nearly guy” the “nice guy” is crucial to understanding what my Imposter Syndrome is, and how I have to deal with it, hopefully giving you some ideas on how to keep moving forward when you get attacked by this anxiety.
I learned from an early age that greatness was not something I was destined for. I’m not sure where that lesson came from, but I knew it to be true.
However, I never listened to it.
I never gave in.
When I set my eyes on going to Drama School there wasn’t a soul on the planet that was going to stop me. I became very hedonistic, very stubborn, and very determined to achieve what I openly set out to achieve. Many, many people told me not to. Many, many people told me to “get a proper job” however the other voices I could hear in my mind were those of the bullies that had plagued my life.
Telling me things like:
“You’re not good looking enough to be an actor”
“You’re not good enough to be an actor”
“What makes you think you will get into Drama School?”
“Are you serious? You’re not even the best actor in our year”
And I wasn’t about to let them win.
So I worked.
Hard.
I didn’t work just a little bit. I worked like a pig. I read every book I could, I saw every play I could, I watched, listened and absorbed as much information about how to become an Actor that I could possibly get my hands on. I wasn’t going to relent. I practiced my Monologues on Christmas Day, I used self-affirmations for my dream each and every day, I designed my life from the moment I made being an actor my goal, I designed my life to make that dream come true.
I was like an athlete. Up early, training each day, not going to Social Events, and getting caught up in things that didn’t serve my goal.
I was razor focussed
There wasn’t anything that was going to stop me. Especially my bullies.
And this theme of working hard. This theme of being relentless is the thing that keeps my imposter syndrome at bay, and I notice it creeps up on me every time my workload drops.
I now work as an Online Personal Trainer and I have to say that being in a much more public environment has definitely caused more imposter like feelings.
Let me take you back to Hamley’s in Regent Street when I first started working as a Magician. I learned magic at the age of 16 on the film set of “About A Boy”, film sets are very boring places with a lot of waiting around and I happened to pick up a deck of cards and start learning how to manipulate them. Once Drama School was over, I decided to use this as a backup to earn some money. I so happened to start hanging out with a little group of Magicians based in Kent, who are without a doubt some of the top close-up magicians the UK has to offer. These guys were being flown all over Europe to perform at very exclusive parties for some very rich people.
I have always wanted to live my life by this one rule:
“If you’re the best person in the room at what you do, you’re in the wrong room”
So I tried to cut it with these Magicians. But I was well out of my depth, and I knew deep down I would never get to their level. I felt like an imposter, and I knew I couldn’t work my way out of it this time…
Because I didn’t want to. I was crippled by my Imposter Syndrome. I didn’t think I could ever work hard enough to get as good as these people.
So I gave up.
I let myself down.
And now as a Personal Trainer, I still live by the same rule.
But I’m not going to let myself down.
At Drama School, I worked my butt off. I worked my butt off before I got there, and when I got there. We had to do 6 days a week, 12 hours a day for three years.
I had two days off in three years, both for Hospital Appointments for my Heart Condition.
As a Personal Trainer, I surround myself by the best in the business. I get them as Guests on my Podcast, I listen to their Podcasts, I read their books and I go to them for help.
But this is a double-edged sword.
Because when I hear them speak, when I hear them coach others, I have this very loud thought in my head:
“You will never be as good as them. All you do is repeat what you hear and copy what they say. They are better than you will ever be. What’s the point?”
Sometimes this thought drills me to a standstill.
Sometimes I can pass it off as nonsense and carry on with my day.
But one thing it will never do is make me give up.
I know that hard work. Not just being tired. But relentless, obsessive hard work will one day shut that voice up. I don’t know when I don’t know how, but I know that it will.
And I know this to be true because I did get into Drama School.
I did stand on the Olivier Stage and speak Shakespeare.
I can achieve what I want when I lose my ego, and knuckle down.
Yes, I might be a jack of all trades, but I also know that whenever I apply myself to something, I make it work, through passion, confidence, and being honest with myself and those around me.
Being a “Jack of All Trades” isn’t necessarily a bad thing when you have a job that requires extreme empathy and understanding of other people in many many many different situations.
In fact, I’m learning to turn my weakness into my strength. Being a “Jack of All Trades” is helping me learn how to be a master of one.
I might not reach greatness.
But I don’t need that. What I do need is to make sure that to those around me I remain humble, I remain honest, and I remain nice.
It’s nice to be nice.
And we all know that ‘nice guy's finish last’.
I’m ok with that.
Because in the same way, I would tell someone who wants to lose weight that there is no time limit, there is no rush.
That you only fail when you give up.
I too am telling myself that I am not going to fail this time. I might well be Mr. Mediocre. I might well be Benvolio and not Romeo.
But hard work always pays off in the end.
And my pay off will be when that voice no longer screams:
“You’re not good enough”
I don’t need it to say:
“You’re so brilliant at what you do” either.
Silence will be more than enough.
Afterall;
“Silence is the perfectest herald of joy” — Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare
Did You Find This Useful?
You can Join The Fitness Collective which is my Membership Group. In there I give Monthly Updates, Live Q and A’s, I provide you with new workouts each and every month, and write guidance on your fitness journey.
To find out more about The Fitness Collective you can click here: The Fitness Collective
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And above all remember this…for as long as you are trying your best no one can ask for more from you.
Coach Adam
When Panic Attacks; Methods To Help You From My Personal Experience
I’m not a panic attack guy.
Well, more to the point…I’m the kind of guy that helps others with their mental health concerns, I’m not the guy who gets them himself.
Until I was.
Here is what happened to me:
Last Saturday there I was swimming in the pool at my Gym, minding my own business, in my lane with one other person.
Socially Distancing I might add.
When two men decided to park themselves right in the middle of this lane and start chatting. Without a care in the world for anyone else, but themselves. The lane isn’t wide enough for four people to keep at least 1m apart.
So I got out of that pool, and into the indoor pool a little miffed about the situation, because it was a nice day, and I was in the pool first.
Then in the indoor pool, the same thing happened. As I was completing some lengths I started to become very aware of my heart rate. I leaned over the side of the pool and counted my pulse…it was 100BPM. That’s ok…but I was still feeling tight…worried…concerned…panicked.
I was short on breath, and I knew something was wrong.
I tried another length, to see if I just needed to focus on something else, but I soon realized I needed to get out of the pool. I climbed out as quickly as I could, got to the locker room, and sat there…for about 10mins trying to figure out if I could have a shower or not.
I sat on the bench with my towel over my head, trying to just slow my breath down as much as possible. I’m no stranger to Meditation and Deep Breathing Exercises, so I just put myself into my world and worked on this.
After about 10minutes I felt strong enough to have a shower, but I still didn’t feel right. I got dressed, went to the cafe, grabbed a Green Tea, and decided to do some more Meditating in the Cafe. Right there…so I could drive home safely.
The whole ordeal, until I felt strong enough to drive home, took me about 2 hours to overcome.
Until I felt myself again…probably more like 48 hours.
I’ve had two panic attacks before in my life…two I remember very clearly.
Number One was on a School Trip in the Mountains of Austria. Now I was no stranger to being bullied at school, and this trip was no different. One of my bullies decided to get me in a headlock at altitude…and he was compressing my Adams Apple into my throat…which sent me into a very odd panic attack. My then PE Teacher, Mr. Stallard, who was a very old school PE Teacher was the man who found me, and I half expected him to just tell me to get up and stop being a wimp…but what he did really surprised me. He marched me down to a bench, and gave me a carrier bag to breathe into, and explained that I was over Oxygenated, and I just needed to re-balance my breath. I felt better almost immediately.
I’m not sure on the science…but it worked.
Number Two was when I was swimming again in Devon. I was in a Hotel Swimming Pool doing a Scuba Diving Lesson. The pool was not even two meters deep, but I lost my oxygen source when swimming and went into a spin. It all happened very quickly and I don’t remember much else other than it occurring, and recovering very quickly again. I carried on with the lesson and all was ok.
My most recent panic attack episode has taught me a number of things and I just wanted to share them with you…to hopefully help you if you ever experience them in the future, or know someone who does.
I’m not a Doctor, if you think you need to see someone about Panic Attacks, then please do. Visit your GP or contact Mind.org.uk.
This is just a few things I have come to realize, and I’m hoping they might help you in some way too.
The Breath Is Key
The breath really is underestimated by far too many of us.
“The Quality of our breath expresses our Inner Feelings”
That quote comes from TKV Desikachar, one of the great Yoga teachers.
I think in the modern age, we take far too much for granted, and our breath is one of those things. Our breath is our life force, and that life force needs to be nurtured, understood but above all used correctly as a tool to help you with what it is you are going through.
When I was sat on the Bench, in the locker room last week, I knew I needed to reconnect with my breath, and I was aware that my breath was the thing that was mainly out of control when I was having my panic attack.
If you can spend time being mindful about your breath if you can develop go-to techniques that will help you if you ever end up in a situation like I was in, it will make the whole experience a little less stressful.
The reason I believe this must be worked upon each day is that it’s important to make sure that when you are at a height of stress, you have the neurological pathway already built so you can just get straight to it. If you’re unsure of what to do…that might make the whole situation a little harder…and you don’t need that at times of panic.
A breathing technique I use is the following:
Count how long your inhale takes.
Then work on extended your exhale for double the amount of time you inhale took.
Then for the next breath…try and make your next inhale longer than the last.
And repeat.
Controlling your breath will allow you to regain control over yourself, and that is what you need when having a panic attack.
Talking About Panic Attacks is Important
Even if you have never had one, I urge you to talk about them. Some people are disposed to having Panic Attacks more often than others, however, this doesn’t mean that you aren’t ever going to have one.
There is no warning. There is no reason. They just are.
This way having a body of experience around the topic is going to help you. I knew full well that I needed to get in control of my breath, not because of my own personal previous experiences with Panic Attacks, but because I have had some very useful conversations around them with my clients.
It’s not uncommon for myself to train people who deal with anxiety and depression, in fact, most of my clients have had mental health issues in their lives.
I remember a client coming to me and we spent an hour chatting about an attack she had on the London Underground. We spoke about it, discussed it and I learnt a lot from her about these situations. She was also very happy to discuss with me the therapy sessions she had after this attack happened and the techniques that she was being recommended to use.
That’s how I knew that controlling my breath in the situation I found myself in was the way to keep everything under control.
My client told me.
Now if I had never had that conversation with her, I may have never realised this, as my body was starting to panic. I was able to think of her in this situation and it wholeheartedly helped me.
Another reason for talking about it is useful is because they are a lot more common than you think they are. If you get panic attacks, you aren’t broken or need fixing. You are just reacting to the world around you. I put a post up earlier this week about my experience and the number of people who reached out to me to tell me that they get them semi-regularly and that it’s something they deal with showed me that I wasn’t in any great existential crisis. I was just being a human being reacting to my surroundings which I found too stressful at that time.
There was a comfort in knowing some of my closest friends have them too, and that hopefully they too can now come to me if they need a chat about the situation because we have common ground there.
You Never Know When It Will Strike
When I look back on the last 12 months of my life, I am aware, at a cerebral level, it has been stressful. Here’s a list:
Built a Visa Application for Migration to Australia.
Submitted Visa Application, and found out I wouldn’t be in Australia until it was confirmed, potentially 24 months away.
Had to realize that I would be spending X amount of time away from my fiancee as she had to head home to Australia for work.
Coronavirus shutting my business down and having to rebuild.
Lockdown.
Dealing with close friends and relatives who caught Covid-19.
Moving out of my Cottage for safety as my fiancee was working in East London as a Paramedic, and I have a heart condition.
Moving back to my Cottage for a couple of weeks until I said goodbye to my fiancee.
Moving back out of the Cottage as our tenancy was over, and packing up our house to go to Australia.
Saying goodbye to my fiancee until I get my Visa.
Adapting to living with my parents again.
Running a business through all of this.
Having Surgery.
Losing Furlough money and not being able to get any additional Government help.
Now if a client gave me that list I would totally understand that their life has been very stressful, and it’s going to take a toll on them.
But I never felt like it was taking a toll on me. I just knuckled down and carried on. I just see it all as part of the process. Everything is just another step forward to my ultimate goal of being happy and living my best life with my future bride and the family we want to build.
But stress is a funny thing. Recently I have had some health issues I have been having to figure out all adding more stress to my life.
The thing is with stress, is often times you aren’t aware of the toll it is taking on you until something more drastic comes out of nowhere. Your body is very effective at dealing with it in the moment, and then when the dust settles, things start to go wrong.
This is why a panic attack can come out of nowhere. You will never know when it will strike, and you could very much be in a situation that you find very normal.
If you do have a Panic Attack that is related to stress, which not all of them are, you may well experience that Panic Attack after a lot of the things that are stressing you out have calmed down.
There seemed to be no direct reason I experienced mine. There was no trigger relating to the amount of stress I have been under.
It just was.
They Can Effect Anyone
As I said in the introduction. I’m not the kind of guy who gets panic attacks.
And then I was.
There are no health markers that cause them, and they aren’t directly related to any Mental Health issues.
They just are sometimes.
Like I’ve mentioned time and time again in this article, I would not consider myself as someone who would get a Panic Attack. There is no order to who suffers from Mental Health issues, it doesn’t discriminate against certain people over others, it just is.
It Takes Longer To Recover Than You Think It Might
I was really surprised that even 24 hours after my attack, I was still a little bit fragile. I didn’t feel myself. In the immediate aftermath, I expected to feel a little bit fragile, and that is why I continued to meditate once I had made my initial recovery.
But even the Sunday following, I was still unsettled.
Talking about it with others certainly helped me get back to feeling to myself, and I think that is a very important step in recovering. Sharing your experience and discussing it through with more and more people, as it helps
More People Have Panic Attacks Than You Think
When I shared my experience I couldn’t believe that the very first person I spoke to, the lady making my Green Tea at the Gym, said that she gets them very often too.
Then when I shared my story wider via Instagram, I got DMs and WhatsApp Messages from followers and clients all telling me that they go through them too.
It really encouraged me.
It allowed me to not feel ashamed.
In fact, I was overwhelmed with the love and compassion I received from others, some complete strangers, telling me to give them a call or to chat with them if I needed it.
Knowing that they are more commonplace than I originally thought was a comfort to me, it was nice to know that what I went through is something that I can use to help me empathize with someone else and that there's nothing inherently wrong with me…we all have moments of fragility.
And that’s ok.
If you have any questions or want to discuss anything about Panic Attacks, I will be more than happy to help.
I’m a Personal Trainer, not a Doctor or qualified Mental Health Worker, but it’s always great to chat.
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Coach Adam