Why bad days are good for us

July 20, 2012, 8:50 amrealbuzz

Why bad days are good for us

Having a bad day? Don't worry; your bad day can do wonders for your health.

Not only can being late help you get a stronger, healthier heart, being grouchy can make you less gullible and missing out on that promotion at work could stop you from suffering with mental health problems. So, if you've had a bad day or are having one today, read these reasons why bad days are good for you:

Being in a bad mood can help you think clearly

Sometimes you just wake up in a bad mood. Everything annoys you. Your shirt's too scratchy, your coffee is too sweet and the guy in front of you has his headphones on so loudly it is making you want to rip his iPod from his ears and throw it out of the bus window. Although no-one will like this irritable and cranky version of you, Australian researchers have found that being grumpy helps us to think clearly.

Oddly, being grouchy also helps us to make decisions quickly and we aren't so easy to fool. So, if you wake up in a foul mood one morning and are feeling bad tempered, it might be the perfect time to take on that difficult task at work.

Your car breaking down can cut the risk of heart disease

One of the worst ways to begin a day is to be late for work. Your alarm doesn't go off and your car won't start. Although it may feel like you are on the verge of disaster remember that your car breaking down can help you get healthy.

Ditch your car and jump onto your bike. You'll whizz through the traffic jams that stress you out, plus if you continue to ride your bike to work it can drastically cut the risk of heart disease. If you swap your car for cycling or walking you are also less likely to be obese and you have an 11 per cent reduction in cardiovascular risk. So, the next time your car breaks down, remember that this might be the first step towards a healthier, happier you.

Not getting a promotion is good for your mental health

Missing out on a promotion at work can be humiliating, painful and hard to recover from. If you didn't get the job though, just remember that a promotion can have terrible effects on your health. A study by Warwick University found that people who had recently been promoted had no health improvements, rather their mental health decreased by a whopping 10 per cent.

The study also found that due to increased responsibilities those workers who had a promotion visited their doctors 20 percent less than those workers who had not been promoted. Maybe that new job wasn't so great after all?

Being dumped can help you lose weight

The end of a relationship can mean the end of your diet. Out comes the bowl of ice-cream, the wine and the comfy pyjamas. The Sinead O'Connor CD is cranked up and played on repeat until you know 'Nothing Compares To You' off by heart.

But, once you are past all of the heartache and tears, a breakup can help you lose weight. Relationships can be full of fat-traps and a US study found that 46 percent of the married women in the study gained 20 pounds after marrying, whilst singletons do more exercise.

A tough day can stop us from getting colds

Stress is most people's worst enemy. It can be awful when you have to visit the dreaded dentist, your boss gives you an impossible task, or you have a dreaded visit from the in-laws. Although it's true that stress is, on the whole, a bad thing for us and our health, it turns out that a little bit of pressure can actually be good for us.

A small amount of stress can help boost your immune system. This is because when you start to feel the pressure your body produces cortisol, which in small amounts can have lots of benefits to your body. Therefore if you're having a tough day and are feeling the pressure, remember that your immune system is getting a boost, which could help you fight against colds and illnesses.

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