Break Up & Divorce

Bouncing Back From a Breakup

Group Fitness: A Great Remedy For Breakup-Induced Depression

It’s normal to feel blue sometimes, but breakups can take the blues to an entirely new level. An abrupt end to a relationship is a primary stressor leading to depression which can in turn lead to suicide and substance abuse.

The World Health Organization estimates that depression affects 121 million people worldwide and while it can be accurately diagnosed and promptly treated through medical means, fewer than 25 percent get the treatment they need. Globally, nearly a million depressed people kill themselves every year, exceeding the number of fatalities in murders and wars. The number of suicides could further increase to 1.5 million people a year by 2020.

While it’s the women who are perceived to get more affected by breakups, surveys paint an opposite picture. According to a Date.com poll, 85 percent of men admitted becoming depressed after a breakup. In contrast, only 8 percent of women polled admitted falling into depression after becoming estranged from their partners.

Anti-depressants can worsen the problem.

For decades, depressed people have turned to mood-lifting drugs like antidepressants to extricate themselves from the seemingly bottomless pit of self-pity, hopelessness, and lack of motivation. In reality, however, antidepressants only work for less than half of the patients.

Those taking antidepressants also have to deal with risks associated with these, like violence, brain tumors, abnormal bleeding, and suicide. In fact, the FDA has forbidden children from taking antidepressants.

People reeling from the blow of a recent breakup, or those suffering from depression in general don’t have to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea, however. There is a safer and healthier option to beat the breakup blues.

A ray of hope: Group fitness.

For decades, experts have known the effects of physical activity to dispelling negativity. According to the American Psychological Association APA), two out of three visits to primary care doctors are stress related, and that the most effective treatment to depression includes physical fitness.

MayoClinic.com suggests exercising for at least 10 minutes a day to beat depression. A 90-minute exercise regimen a week broken into three sessions yields optimum benefits. Exercise releases the feel-good chemicals called endorphins that transform a person’s outlook. If done regularly, physical fitness can provide healthy distractions that can ward off depression for good.

Why group fitness? Any depressed person can exercise solo if that is more suitable to his temperament lifestyle, but if he wants to reap the optimum benefits from this activity, signing up for group fitness classes is advisable. This is because group fitness allows him to meet new friends who can help perk him up in times when motivation is at an ebb.

Group fitness also allows those suffering from breakup-induced depression to share each other’s stories and journey to recovery which is itself highly therapeutic. They can give each other tips on which good online dating sites to join, or ask each other out for a drink after class, for instance. Group fitness buddies often become so close that some even go on double dates and group boot camps.

Fitness gyms often offer various group fitness classes so one can easily find one to fit into his schedule. Classes include yoga, Pilates, kickboxing, aerobics, and many other forms of exercise. Class size may range from only a handful of students to a really large one made of 50 students. Some gyms even offer a free group fitness trial, allowing students to sample the workouts before signing up for a paid membership.

If you’ve just separated from your partner and you’re finding it hard to cope without popping anti-depressants, you might want to consider group fitness as a better option to deal with your depression. In addition to the mind-body-spirit benefits you can gain from group fitness classes, you will also lose the unwanted pounds and look sexier and feel comfortable and confident to start dating again. When it comes to breakups, nothing beats looking good as the best revenge.

More than just the fitness element, group fitness activities presents you with potential opportunities to start dating new people.

Group fitness to move on from your ex: feel fantastic and unearth new dating options, what are you waiting for?

Bouncing Back From a Breakup
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