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Saturday, February 26, 2011

Why else jurus, forms and Kata are good for you

Beyond mood, jurus and forms could be of benefit is related to the link between exercise and mental health.

Here is an extract taken from a report: Physical Activity and Mental Health: the role of physical activity in promoting mental wellbeing and preventing mental health problems - An Evidence Briefing May 2008, (Whitelaw et al. 2008).

"The notion of there being a range of possible explanatory mechanisms that explain the nature of the association between physical activity and mental health was introduced in outline earlier. In more detail, these are:

biochemical & physiological: improved mental health is linked to increased core body temperature; increases in endorphins; changes in the serotonergic systems and effects on neurotransmitters;

improvements in fitness and weight loss: improved mental wellbeing is associated with the feeling that the body is fitter or more ‘toned’;

‘mastery’: effects are linked to increases in self worth and personal control that come with the mastering of new physical activity tasks;

‘distraction’: positive outcomes are associated with the tendency for physical activity to take us away from stressful parts of our lives;

social interaction and sense of belonging: mental wellbeing benefits can arise from the collective experience of being active as a group38;

social and cultural value: physical activity is largely seen as socially and culturally ‘virtuous’ and therefore has the potential in itself to increase self-esteem"

(Source: Whitelaw et al, 2008,section 3.6.1).

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