This makes total sense: When you're engaged in an activity you truly enjoy, you're happy. And, when you're happy you're not dwelling on all the negative things in life, nor are you stressed about obligations or problems. Certainly this is a good thing from an emotional point of view, but it also has physical benefits.
We know exercise reduces stress, but it turns out that more simple stationary things, like doing puzzles, painting or sewing can help, too.
To find that out, Matthew Zawadzki, an assistant professor of psychology with the University of California, Merced, looked at how the body reacts to leisure activities, defined as anything a person does in his or her free time.
In the study, 115 men and women from different racial groups, ages 20 to 80, were asked to wear little electrodes attached to their chest which measured heart rate throughout the experiment. They were then monitored over the course of three consecutive days, taking surveys at random times throughout the day. The survey questions included what they were doing at that very moment and how they felt about it.
Virtually all the participants reported reduced stress and had a lower heart rate during leisure activities, as compared to parts of the day when they weren't involved in leisure. Leisure could include exercise and socializing, but in many cases it was simple stationary things like listening to music, doing puzzles, sewing, even watching movies or TV. The people said they were 34 percent less stressed, 18 percent less sad and their heart rate dropped, on average, by 3 percent.
[For more of this story, written by Patti Neighmond, go to http://www.npr.org/blogs/healt...-for-your-health-too]
Comments (0)