Maintenance For The Corporate Athlete
March 13, 2018
Combating Stress
By: Dr. Jeff Rosenberg
Nothing can throw you off your game faster than a particularly stressful day. Over time, stress and tension can eat away at all the hard work you've done training. Surprisingly, it could even undo strict maintenance you've kept up with otherwise. That's why taking an active approach to preventing stress, and then minimizing the impact of inevitable stress that comes with a rigorous corporate job should be a vital part of your maintenance practices.
High stress is quickly becoming a normal part of life in the workplace. According to OSHA, stress cost American companies more than $300 billion a year, lost productivity, health consequences, and many other problems. It's no surprise that stress has become a major problem among professionals, especially small business owners, entrepreneurs, and C-level executives.
Of course, not all stress is a bad thing. Small bursts of stress are actually good for your immune system. Manageable stressors challenge us to perform better and exceed expectations. In fact, a certain level of stress is what keeps us motivated and working hard. Unfortunately, workplace stress nowadays often goes beyond the healthy level. Knowing that 75% to 90% of all doctors visits can be traced back to stress-related disorders and conditions, it becomes clear that fighting workplace stress must be a top priority by corporate athletes. Stress triggers a wide range of health problems from headaches, diabetes, skin conditions, to even lowering the function of your immune system making you more susceptible to diseases. In many cases, heavy loads of stress have also been found to lower your IQ.
Here are three simple, yet effective ways to help relieve your stress in the busy corporate environment.
1 - Mindfulness practices. Deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and guided reflection/meditation have long been touted as excellent ways to de-stress. Over the past few years, the actual scientific proof backing these powerful methods to reduce the harmful affects of stress and anxiety have only been growing. Dedicate 5 to 10 minutes per day in a quiet room with your eyes closed to one of these practices.
2 - Another effective way to de-stress yourself is to take a walk outside. Even though we're working in a busy city, there are small parks where you can go to shut down, de-stress, re-energize, and re-focus.
3 - Lastly, make sure you're getting anywhere from 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. If we get less than six hours of sleep, the brain is unlikely to get enough rest to properly handle good stress, much less to deal with negative stressors.
Stress has been with humans since the beginning of time; it's wired into us. Stress has kept us alive in the most dangerous situations, but it could also lead to serious health complications. With these three simple tips, you could learn how to alleviate the negative effects of stress on your life. Start practicing them today!