Exercise: It's Not Just About Health and Beauty!

losing weight and getting hot, it turns out, is not the only reason to tie your shoes. Regular exercise is another powerful tool to live a happier life. And it does not take much to see a real difference. In recent studies, moderate exercise of 30 minutes three times a week can be just as effective as our best anti-depressant medications (yes, Prozac, talk about yourself).

Moderate Exercise releases dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin - the brain chemicals of happiness - and has been shown to lift mood up to 12 hours. Exercise is a healthy way to turn away from your problems when you are stuck in negative rumination cycle.

Exercise can be easily combined with other happiness boosting activities. If the weather is nice, go outside and walk or run through the park or at least close to some trees in the neighborhood, nice weather and exposure to nature to improve mood in addition to the benefit you get from exercise. If you can achieve with others or even just make people laugh as you pass on the street (both forms of social interaction, another key to happiness booster), you'll get a double shot of happiness. I often make the game smiling and saying hi to everyone in my tracks - their mirror neurons make it difficult for them to not react the same way. And it always gives me an incentive to see others smile - especially when I helped cause the

Exercise does not have to be a grind at the gym either. Any activity that gets your heart rate gives you an advantage. Did you like playing sports when you were younger? Find these and make time to do it. Do you like gardening or walking? Make time in your busy schedule. Consider a walk during your lunch break - you can even bring along the staff, if you need some time brainstorming or confirmation on the project. Get in the habit of taking the stairs instead of elevator or park your car at the rear of the lot and walk a little more.

The exercise-obsessed culture, it's hard not to see the exercise as another "should." We already spend so much time beating it over going to the gym, so that we can lose the weight to be "healthier." Instead, see if you can put the exercise in the same category as the other things that make you happy - listening to good music, savoring a glass of wine, catch up with friends. Take the perspective of the exercise is simply another tool to help you improve your mood and generate more.

Struggling with how you can incorporate regular exercise into your life? In a few weeks, I will discuss how to create habits of happiness. For now, play with this theory. How do you feel in the days you'll get some exercise in relation to the days that you do not?