Combining Exercise and Mindfulness Is Even Better for Mental Health Than Doing One Alone, Study Finds

Adding both exercise and mindfulness to your routine can help boost your mental health, well-being, and mood. We know getting enough exercise and practicing mindfulness are both beneficial habits to improve health both physically and mentally healthy. Exercise alone can keep our bodies in shape, boost mood, help alleviate aches and pains, prevent injury, and even boost our brain health.  Meanwhile, mindfulness has been shown to support and enhance focus and attention, memory, emotion regulation, and stress and mood management.

Now, a recent systemic review has found that combining both exercising and mindfulness in our day-to-day routines can offer even greater overall benefits than doing only one or the other.

Study and Results: Mental Health Benefits of Combined Exercise and Mindfulness Interventions

The study is said to be the first of its kind to offer insight into how combining these two activities can have positive impacts on health and well-being lives. It was lead by Masha Remskar, a behavioral scientist and doctoral researcher at the University of Bath, who has expertise in mindfulness and exercise, alongside the Medito Foundation, a non-profit helping to improve mental well-being.

The results of the review showed that adding exercise and mindfulness together into a regular routine appears to be most beneficial for not only overall health, but for more significant mental health benefits, like anxiety and depression prevention, stress reduction, emotional regulation and resilience, and motivation.

According to the study, mindfulness can motivate you to exercise because it helps rid negative thoughts and allows you to stay in the present rather than fear the potential outcome. Many struggle with trying new exercise routines—or sticking to ones they do try—because they're afraid they won’t succeed, for instance, but mindfulness can help push past that anxiety and free your mind of self-judgment and criticism.

The review also states that research in this area is still very much developing, and that more evidence is needed, to better understand the full impact of combining physical activity with mindfulness, but there’s no time like the present to get started.

How to Incorporate Mindfulness in Your Everyday Routine (And Include It In Exercising)

Being mindful can take a little practice, but doesn’t have to be something overwhelming to add to an already busy to-do list. There are simple mindful breathing exercises you can do any time of day (even at work!) when you need an extra boost. Even everyday tasks, such as brushing your teeth and sipping your happy hour drink can all be done more mindfully and intentionally without any distractions (phone, TV, etc); instead, try appreciating all the sensory details each experience or activity holds and getting in touch with how you feel physically and emotionally during it.

Performing a basic body scan before you hit the gym or that fitness class can also help get you get centered in your body and get in the zone. Take a few minutes to breathe, paying attention to the pace and quality of each inhale and exhale; mentally "scan" each area of your body to notice how everything feels. But remember: You’re simply a curious, objective observer—you're scanning to acknowledge what you’re feeling, make a note of it, and then gently move on to the next area.