Stress and Anxiety Sabotaged Exercise Motivation During the Pandemic, Study Says

你想知道为什么你在去年没有动力去锻炼身体，即使你知道它对你有好处身体和情感福祉？根据新的万博手机客户端研究，大流行的心理健康影响可能是责任。

在四月份，PLOS One发布了对超过1600名人员的调查研究结果，发现那些经历了大流行期间抑郁和焦虑水平的人也倾向于最不活跃。人们还说，焦虑，缺乏社会支持，以及有限的锻炼设备和空间使得难以运动。

Here’s what the research shows about how stress and anxiety from the pandemic sabotaged exercise motivation for many people, and tips for getting back into physical activity.

研究

麦克马斯特大学的研究团队Western University in Ontario, Canada, surveyed 1,669 people to learn about how their physical activity, sedentary behavior, and mental health changed during the initial COVID-19 lockdowns, compared to before the pandemic.

More than 80% of participants were women. Most lived in Canada, were between 18 and 45 years old, and had a bachelor’s degree or higher levels of education. Nearly half of participants knew someone who was at high risk of COVID-19 (such as a person with a compromised immune system, or a healthcare worker caring for COVID patients), which may have contributed to their压力and anxiety.

这项由30个问题组成的调查于2020年4月23日至6月30日在网上进行。它要求参与者分享他们的人口统计信息，以及他们目前和大流行前的体力活动和心理健康症状。万博手机客户端

结果显示，总体而言，在流感大流行期间，人们经历了明显更多的压力和中度的焦虑和抑郁。他们的运动量也比禁闭前少。每周，有氧运动平均减少22分钟，力量训练平均减少32分钟，而参与者还额外花了33分钟静坐。

“由于许多成年人在家工作的时间更长，并且努力在工作生活和家庭生活之间取得健康的平衡，从事诸如锻炼之类的自理活动让人觉得是对时间的徒劳利用，特别是如果这段时间很容易被基本任务所占据，比如在工作中多花些时间来提高工作效率，照顾家人的需要。达德利，PsyD，美国Teladoc., which provides virtual healthcare.

他们的心理健康变得“更糟糕”或“更糟糕万博手机客户端的”的参与者经历了最大的下降体力活动在Covid-19期间与那些有改进或情绪健康的改变的人相比。

他说：“当你考虑到一个人参加锻炼所需要的时间、动机、目标和忍受不适的意愿时，你就会明白为什么一个人面对压力和焦虑时不太可能参加锻炼。”第。普里扬卡，MD，精神科医生和医疗总监社区精神病学.“尽管他们的手上有时间，但由于消极的思想，这个人正在努力与心理不适进行困扰，因为消除了动力和能量来参与活动，更不用说锻炼。”

Barriers to Exercise

在最初的禁闭期间，人们运动量减少的原因有很多。”“缺乏动力”被认为是COVID-19期间近一半参与者运动的障碍，比大流行前的约40%有所上升。

Another major factor was the closure of gyms and other fitness facilities. Around 45% of people said that lack of access to健身房使他们在流感大流行期间无法锻炼，而之前只有5%。同样，缺乏设备也成为约30%的人的障碍，比大流行前水平增加了约25个百分点。

除了实际障碍外，在流感大流行期间，人们的运动动机也受到情感障碍的影响。超过20%的人发现，焦虑加剧是身体活动的障碍，高于大流行前的15%。同样，“缺乏支持”作为一种运动障碍的比例从COVID-19之前的7%增加到了锁定状态下的15%。

进一步的分析表明，焦虑和抑郁症症状增加的人更有可能引用那些在公共卫生危机期间运动的障碍。

“尽可能多地了解身体活动和锻炼的积极方面，一个处理抑郁和焦虑措施的人挣扎，因为低能量和缺乏动力是相当普遍的症状，”普利亚纳博士说。

“People tend to give up on things that are not absolutely necessary for living, and, unfortunately, exercise is one of those things. It soon becomes a vicious cycle because less activity further decreases your energy level which in turn makes you even less likely to be physically active,” she adds.

Understanding and Increasing Exercise Motivation

这种流行病不仅影响了研究参与者的锻炼习惯，还改变了他们的一些生活习惯reasons for working out.

对于许多人来说，体重减轻、力量增强、外表目标和享受成为他们在禁闭期间进行体力活动的不太重要的原因，而不是他们在流感大流行之前的感受。相反，人们开始对体育锻炼对心理健康的好处更加感兴趣。万博手机客户端

Anxiety relief was a motivation for nearly 60% of people during the pandemic—up from around 45 percent before. The proportion of people using physical activity for stress reduction climbed by about 5 percentage points. And slightly more people also looked to improved sleep as a motivating factor to work up a sweat.

这些身体活动的这些和其他益处可能会增加大流行期间的重要性，而许多人正在经历睡眠问题和更高水平的压力和焦虑。

许多人的努力部分可能是弄清楚的方法，以提高运动动机，将体育活动转化为常规习惯。达德利博士说，首先采取婴儿步骤。

“改变你对锻炼的思考，”她说。“而不是将它视为一个令人生畏的任务，你可能无法表现良好，而是甚至一点运动就好而不是没有。”

她建议首先关注低影响力，特别是如果你关心的是经过几个月的久坐不动的身体应变。

“While aerobic exercises such as running and swimming are great for the brain and mood, yoga with a focus on breathing, meditation, and mindfulness is helpful in reducing anxiety and increasing confidence in the ability to engage in physical activity,” she says.

Dudley博士补充说，与朋友锻炼 - 无论是虚拟还是安全的人 - 也可以帮助您坚持锻炼目标。

And while exercise can make a positive difference on your emotional wellbeing, you may need to tackle mental health symptoms in a more structured setting to increase your motivation and feel better overall.

“For those struggling with engaging in physical activity because anxiety or depression levels are too high, or feel uncertain whether physical activity can actually help, consider seeking support from a mental health professional,” says Dr. Dudley.