Since its advent, Islam has always encouraged its believers to exert effort through useful physical activities and sports which are extremely beneficial for our body, as they help us get fit and prevent us from being sick.

Games and sports are equally helpful in improving our mental health. This article will focus on some of the important advantages of sports and physical activities on our mental health.

Relieving Anxiety

If you are an athlete, you will easily feel that your engagement in sports and rigorous physical activities have removed your anxiety in a complete manner. This will ultimately assist you to always remain cheerful and happy.

“Active participation in games and sports will create enhanced pressure on your muscles and tendons, which will ultimately assist in relaxing your mind and body.” Dr. Hasibul Hasan, specialist in neurology and neurosurgery at Barisal Medical College said.

“In very stressful situations, an athlete or sports person reacts in a better way. This is because physical activities will relieve him from all sorts of depression and worry, and enable him to take appropriate decisions whenever necessary,” he added.

Sports and fitness activities can play a significant role to relieve us from stress and tension. When you are playing, you will temporarily forget anything that is creating problems in your personal or social life.

Dr. Mohammad Habibur Rahman, senior medical officer at Narayanganj Medical College stated that “If you are play sports, it will reduce your tension quite significantly. The reason is, physical activities will increase your overall circulation of blood inside your body, and specifically it will ensure good blood flow to the brain.”

On the same track, concentration is something that is always crucial to do better in training. If you play sports enthusiastically, you will feel that you are able to concentrate more in other activities, too.

Active participation in sports will assist in reducing stress, which will help you to become more focused in all other activities. At the end, this will help you to achieve true success in life.

Dealing with Depression

Nowadays, depression is very common as a psychological illness that destroys lives and wreaks havoc on many people. Often you will find the news of suicide due to depression and dissatisfaction with life.

If you are really depressed, then involving within games will significantly help you reduce the symptoms of depression and improve your mood. Different forms of physical activities are important for the effective treatment of depression.

“Sports and different other forms of physical exercises are really helpful to remove your worries and stress, which will make your heart full of joy and contentment, and enhance your life satisfaction”, said Nusrat Ansary, associate professor of psychology, at the Women’s Federation College of Dhaka.

“Sports and depression cannot go side-by-side. In addition to psychotherapy and behavioral interventions, it’s important to play various sports for the successful treatment of depression”, she added.

Ensuring Restful Sleep

Appropriate level of sleep is absolutely essential for maintaining a good health. Researchers have suggested that 5-8 hours of sound sleep every night is quite vital for keeping sound physical and mental health. And physical activities and sports always ensure sound restful sleep.

Suppose you are a footballer, and you practice on daily basis. After playing continuously for an hour and a half match or for couple of training hours, it is quite certain that you will get extremely tired. This weariness will help you to have a sound sleep, which will make you joyful and happy.

Sports can surely assist you to elevate your self-worth and make you totally confident about yourself. It may help you to give proper value to your life, and a goal to achieve.

Dr. Fatima Nuzhat, renowned psychologist and expert in mental health reiterated this fact:  that “Regular physical activity will boost your self-confidence. It will surely make you feel better and totally satisfied with yourself. It will also remove all sorts of shyness, and make you extrovert.”

“After completion of specific course of physical activity, you may feel like you have got million dollars,” she added.

Having Fun

Engaging in various kinds of physical activities will always give you a lot of fun and ensure true entertainment. Experts unanimously agree that being always cheerful and happy is tremendously beneficial for maintaining a sound mental health. If you are keen to have fun, sports and games will ensure that for you.

Hence, it can be concluded that all of us should be physically active. We should engage ourselves in sports for the overall betterment of our mental health.

This article is from Science’s archive and we’ve originally published it on an earlier date.