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Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

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Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#291

Post by jimnotgym »

machomaster wrote: post #263
a_t48 wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You aren't the only one. For me it was diagnosed as ADHD.

Way too many people treat ADHD as an excuse of not following proper task-management rules. They are so special that no rules could possible apply to them. To all hundreds of millions of them... This is backwards. In practice, it should be the exact opposite. ADHD people should be MORE vigilant regarding the correct behavior, rules, habits. It is neurotypical people who have some leeway to be lazy with what and how th…

I keep being told this stuff by normies who couldn't do my job.

ADHD doesn't manifest the same way for everyone.

> pay EXTRA attention to doing right things the correct way

I do wrong things a different way all the time. I'm a maverick. I'm known to have creative solutions other people can't find. Not little ones either, 'we have been trying this for 20 years' ones. $multi-million strategic ones. I can't do the boring task list work you normies can do, but I have super powers you don't.

The breakthrough started and my recovery began when I stopped listening to people like you and focused on what I am good at.

But last night, I wanted to get to bed at 10pm, but I got some music stuck in my head. I had some music on to chill out, but something gripped me and I picked up my guitar. It felt like a moment of time but I look up and it is 1am. If I had gone to bed I would have lain awake all night. Meditation would have had this music dominating it and dragging me out of it. I'm in bed late on Saturday morning typing this, which will upset my whole weekend, but I wouldn't have slept, which would have been worse. So, I just went with it.

I envy people who can keep a routine, but I now pity people who don't have extraordinary moments of inspiration. I embrace my super powers and accept my life won't be normal. It will be exceptional.

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#292

Post by darrenf »

bmicraft wrote: post #236
Jtsummers wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

5k is a common distance for runs. 2k would be a shorter run/walk event, it's more common when you have kids participating. It's not confusing, just normal language. No cults involved unless you think running is a cult. The "k" is for "kilometer" in case you're still confused.

5k is not a distance. 5km, 5 thousand feet or yards are. I've never heard of this weird and unnecessary "abbreviation"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5K_run

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#293

Post by jimnotgym »

Jtsummers wrote: post #210
bmicraft wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This reads like an ad. Why would you capitalize it like a product name and then even link to the website? I still have no idea what it really is. From the name I'd think you're going for a run at a local park. The website calls it a "5k and 2k community event", what that's supposed to mean I have no clue. It insists you either "join" or "volunteer", all while being as non-specific as possible why I should even care 2…

5k is a common distance for runs. 2k would be a shorter run/walk event, it's more common when you have kids participating. It's not confusing, just normal language. No cults involved unless you think running is a cult. The "k" is for "kilometer" in case you're still confused.

HN would be a depressing place if we all had to have a rant every time someone posted about something I had never heard of!

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#294

Post by jimnotgym »

synecdoche wrote: post #277
Jtsummers wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 5k is not a distance. 5km, 5 thousand feet or yards are. I answered that question already, try reading my earlier comment. And if you think it's weird, take it up with people from last century when they started using that abbreviation.

For an international audience it's ambiguous. 5 k of what could one reasonably wonder.

Even with context? Even with a link?

I mean I feel annoyed every time I see a new technology on hn, only to find it is another js framework after clicking the link, finding it says nothing useful, then typing it into Wikipedia. I don't typically come on and complain about it.

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#295

Post by scorpioxy »

jimnotgym wrote: post #288
jjulius wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry to confuse, it's 9:30 every night. Anything less than 7 and I'm wrecked. 7.5 is ideal, but I also feel great with 7. My non-scientific guess is that I spent so much of my teens and 20s getting less than 6 hours that my body is delighted by 7+ lol. But yeah, I imagine I'll need more as time continues to pass and I get older. /shrug Edit: To say nothing of my mild fear of an inadequate amount of sleep in middle a…

My neurodiverse mind often won't let me sleep that early. It just whirls with problem solving that keeps me up all night if I go to bed in a whirl. Yes I know how to meditate. Imagine spending years at it and finding yourself in a mental state that means you can't clear your mind any more. You can't 'let it go', it just comes straight back in a more aggressive way with flash backs and visions. What would you do now?

Not the person you're replying to but I am confused by your comment. What would you do? You'd try and meditate. If that doesn't work, you distract yourself with something else. The mind whirling keeping you up at night is rarely a productive thing, speaking from experience.

I hope my comment doesn't come off as dismissive but learning to meditate is practicing to "let it go". It isn't a switch. You're teaching your mind not to get "too attached" to anything you consider unwholesome.

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#296

Post by roryirvine »

synecdoche wrote: post #277
Jtsummers wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 5k is not a distance. 5km, 5 thousand feet or yards are. I answered that question already, try reading my earlier comment. And if you think it's weird, take it up with people from last century when they started using that abbreviation.

For an international audience it's ambiguous. 5 k of what could one reasonably wonder.

It's in relation to a run, though - what else could it mean but distance? Steps? Maybe, but I've genuinely never heard of that being used as a goal when running. Seconds? Again, it's a possibility, but it'd be more usual to say something like "1h23-ish" - and, besides, that'd be a really odd time to pick.

And even in the UK, where many people still measure longer distances in miles, I've never heard anyone talk about a run being however many thousand feet or yards or chains or whatever.

All of the first page results for a USA-based google search for "5k" are running-related too, so it can't really be all that ambiguous there either.

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#297

Post by wiether »

evanjrowley wrote: post #248

I've had many exercise regimens throughout my life but never has it ever helped me with mental health in any way. Exercise has always been a mental drain for me. A day when I go to the gym is a day when I give up mental capacity that could have been used for something else. I'll be less effective at work and less organized at home. It's like my IQ's dropped by double digits. I drink enough water and electrolytes, in…

Sorry if I'm stating something obvious for some, but, exercise doesn't HAVE to be something pushed by the industry like running or going to the gym.

I got great success converting friends and coworkers to... walking.

Not going on a multi-hours hike on the weekend, but just walking around the block or in a park for half an hour at mid-day, and going through the same routes so you don't have to think about finding your way.

By doing so, not only you are physically active, which is a big positive overall for most of office workers, but it requires so little of focus to achieve it that your mind is now free to wander as it please.

During this free period, you can come up with a solution to an issue you've been stuck on during the morning or for days, or you'll think about plans for the future, or you'll just get back to work with a clear mind, ready to tackle the issues of the afternoon.

> I give up mental capacity that could have been used for something else

That's the beauty of _just walking_, it requires no mental capacity, it frees it actually. Don't overthink things, like where should I walk, when, do I have the right gear... Just get outside, put the appropriate clothing depending on the weather and, enjoy your free mind compute credits!

Once you see how it works, it feels like cheating.

Afterwards you'll feel better physically and mentally.

All the gym/running/zone 2 stuff is something different altogether that could come up once you're converted to the light exercise/big effects of _just walking_.

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#298

Post by jimnotgym »

scorpioxy wrote: post #295
jimnotgym wrote: post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My neurodiverse mind often won't let me sleep that early. It just whirls with problem solving that keeps me up all night if I go to bed in a whirl. Yes I know how to meditate. Imagine spending years at it and finding yourself in a mental state that means you can't clear your mind any more. You can't 'let it go', it just comes straight back in a more aggressive way with flash backs and visions. What would you do now?

Not the person you're replying to but I am confused by your comment. What would you do? You'd try and meditate. If that doesn't work, you distract yourself with something else. The mind whirling keeping you up at night is rarely a productive thing, speaking from experience. I hope my comment doesn't come off as dismissive but learning to meditate is practicing to "let it go". It isn't a switch. You're teaching your m…

No, your tone is fine, and thanks for that. A whirling mind is not often productive but it can make great leaps forward. It can also be paranoid, dangerous and self-destructive.

I was trying to make the point that self- help easy fixes are not always successful. I spent decades actively learning to sleep. It works most of the time. It is good to learn. I use a mindfulness sleep meditation most nights. I also learnt from sleep hygiene that going to bed early is normally a big mistake for me, precluding much of the 'go to bed earlier, get up and exercise' advice.

I have also hit periods in my life where I simply couldn't mediate for weeks on end despite regular practice over a decade. I was mentally ill. No routine or hacks was going to get me to exercise. I needed therapy (EMDR) and rest, and when I got really self-destructive I needed sleep medication (useful only for a very short time). The 'hack' people just made me feel bad about myself for being unable to get a grip.

That is what I want people to see, exercise is only useful if you are well enough to do it. If you are not well enough to shave, then don't beat yourself up for not getting exercise. Put a pin in it, and do it later.

My latest illness was (psycho-somatically) interfering with my cortisol levels, and it made any exercise crippling. I couldn't recover. I didn't get the boost. I beat myself up about not being able, and it made me worse.

Exercise and therapy rather than exercise or therapy might be better advice.

Edit, typos

Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression

#299

Post by andy99 »

jimnotgym wrote: post #286
andy99 wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People would rather blame external factors and not take responsibility. It’s actually insulting to people who work hard that some people assume they have it easy somehow, like the “must be nice” comment upstream. Not everyone takes the view that you can’t control what happens to you, it’s pretty easy to see who does.

I have to leave the house for work at 7am. I get back sometime between 6 and 8pm. When I get back I'm mentally and physically shot. I mean, yes I could get an easier job that pays less I suppose, lose the house etc.

You should try doing 1/2 hour of exercise after you get back. It will make you feel way better, especially mentally.
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