Moving for Health: Stress

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Moving for Health Stress

• Get Moving Kentucky!
• Moving for Health Lesson Series

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Objectives

• At the end of this lesson you will be able to
  answer the following questions
• What is stress?
• How do I know if I am stressed?
• How does physical activity affect stress?

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What is Stress?

• A form of mental and physical energy that allows
  the mind and body to perform everyday tasks
• Everyone experiences it

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Distress

• When a person experiences too much stress all at
  once, or over a long period of time
• Can contribute to
• Headaches
• Back pain
• Allergies
• Ulcers
• Depression
• Colitis
• Increased blood pressure
• Heart Attack
• Stroke

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Stress Prevention

• Preventing all stress is not a reasonable goal
• However
• Preventing distress is an important part of
  taking care of our
• overall health

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Symptoms of DistressSymptoms can be behavioral,
emotional, or physical

• Behavioral
• Cant relax
• Cant concentrate
• Cant sleep
• Change in eating habits

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Symptoms of Distress

• Emotional
• Irritability
• Constant worry
• Depression
• Burn out
• Uncontrollable emotions

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Symptoms of Distress

• Physical
• Clenched teeth
• Backaches
• Noticeable weight loss or gain
• Stomach problems
• Loss of appetite
• Rising blood pressure

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Physical Activity and Stress

• When the brain is taxed by real or imaginary
  concerns (stress) it communicates to the body to
  do something or get with it
• More chemicals are produced in the body to keep
  the brain working at this level
• Physical activity can help the brain and body
  work together to produce these needed chemicals

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Physical Activity and Stress

• Become aware of your stress behaviors
• Use them as a signal that it is time to relieve
  stress through activity, such as walking or
  cleaning

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Summary

• Stress is a form of mental and physical energy
  that allows the mind and body to perform everyday
  tasks
• Distress occurs when a person experiences too
  much stress all at once or over a long period of
  time
• Know the symptoms of distress and use physical
  activity to relieve it

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• This presentation was brought to you by the Get
  Moving Kentucky! Program Manual
• Lesson Written by
• Doug Burnham
• The development of the HEEL program was made
  possible by Senator Mitch McConnell with funds
  earmarked for the University of Kentucky, College
  of Agriculture, Lexington, KY and budgeted
  through the CSREES/USDA Federal Administration.