Today there is a clear understanding that mental health is an integral part of health in general. It is in a state of psychological well-being that we are able to withstand stress, work productively, realize our abilities and enjoy life. This is also important because the health of each of us affects the well-being of society as a whole.

There are many mental health improvement practices. For example, mindfulness meditation and relaxation techniques focus the mind on the moment of “ being here and now” and teach you to enjoy the present moment without worrying about the past or the future.

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Research has confirmed that mindfulness meditation:

1. improves memory and increases the volume of gray matter - gray matter plays a key role in information processing and spatial thinking, which means it affects memory, attention and speech;

2. helps to feel included in social connections;

3. increases the level of happiness;

4. enhances concentration and helps to cope with the “wandering of thoughts”, which 46.9% of respondents are exposed to.

Roughly speaking, this kind of meditation practice is a kind of SRT for our mental health. Recently, however, new views have appeared on the effectiveness of mindfulness in each individual case.

Physical activity increases the ability to learn and process information

For example, a new study from the University of Cambridge showed that mindfulness is not an effective way for everyone to improve their state of mind. And even when it does work, meditation may not be better than other activities like exercise.

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The study published in PLOS Medicine presents the results of 136 trials in which people attended community-based mindfulness programs, such as in universities and workplaces. Participants completed questionnaires between one and six months after completing the programs so that scientists could track changes in levels of anxiety, depression, and psychological well-being. A total of 12,000 people aged 18 to 73 from 29 different countries participated in the experiments.

It turned out that most mindfulness programs actually reduced levels of anxiety, depression and stress, and also improved well-being. However, this improvement in mental health was not greater than through other activities such as exercise.

Studies says it would be a mistake to think that mindfulness practice is equally effective for everyone. "We have much, much more evidence that physical and mental exercise is beneficial." For example, a 2018 study published in The Lancet Psychiatry found that people who exercise experience about a day and a half a month fewer mental health problems compared to those who do not.

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While all types of exercise have been associated with improved mental health, popular team sports, cycling, and physical education have proven to be the most effective. The study also found that 45-minute sessions, three to five times a week, had the greatest impact on improving psychological well-being.

Mindfulness is a great practice for improving your emotional well-being. But you may have tried to practice mindfulness meditation more than once and postponed it for different reasons. Start exercising and enjoy what you are doing. A lot of scientific evidence and the experience of my clients confirm that physical activity is a reliable prevention of apathy and depression, and also significantly increases the ability to learn and process information.

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