Mental Health & Exercise: Finding YOUR Flow Through Movement
My name is Jai Forster, and for years, I worked as a personal trainer, helping clients improve their physical health and fitness. Like most trainers, I started focusing on crafting the perfect programs and meticulously designing workouts to help people reach their goals. But early on, I noticed something that completely shifted my approach: client results were determined less by the program I created and more by their mindset.
No matter how optimised or well-structured a program was, the clients who thrived were those with a strong sense of self-awareness and a mindset geared toward long-term progress and growth.
It became clear that my role was not just about providing the "right" workout or nutrition plan but about helping clients learn more about themselves, how they think, how they operate, and what truly motivates them.
Over time, I started to shift my focus. I began building something beyond the standard personal training model, a system that could help clients learn more about themselves: who they are and what makes them “tick”. This was the seed that grew into Life Logic.
Life Logic is now a framework where clients can explore and learn about their uniqueness, mindset, biology, and natural tendencies and how those factors influence their health, fitness, and overall well-being. Instead of constantly coming to me for individual support as though I were a qualified psychologist (which I'm not), clients now have the tools and knowledge to understand themselves better. With this self-awareness, they can align their actions, exercise, nutrition, or daily habits with their identity.
The result? Better alignment, better flow, and ultimately, better results. When you understand yourself on a deeper level, you can create a life that feels frictionless. It's no longer about blindly following a one-size-fits-all plan but about crafting a way of living that's uniquely suited to you.
In this post, I'll explore one aspect of that alignment: the link between exercise and mental health and how finding flow, both in movement and life, is key to thriving. Let's explore how you can better understand your body and mind to create a fitness routine that supports your physical and mental well-being.
Mental Health & Exercise: Finding Flow and Thriving Through Movement
As Mental Health Month rolls around, we can reflect on the delicate balance between our mental and physical health and how the two are deeply intertwined. We've all heard it before: exercise is good for your mental health. But what if it's not just about exercising for the sake of movement but rather about understanding our uniqueness, aligning with it, and finding flow in the way we move?
The Intersection of Uniqueness and Mental Health
Before we discuss the well-documented benefits of exercise for mental health, it's important to acknowledge something fundamental: you are unique. Your body, your biology, your experiences… everything about you makes you an individual. Whatever works for someone else, whether in fitness, nutrition, or life strategies, may not necessarily work for you.
At Life Logic, we believe the first step in creating lasting mental and physical well-being is to understand your uniqueness. This principle applies to everything: the food you eat, how you hydrate, how your body responds to movement, and even the environment in which you thrive. When you truly understand yourself and how you interact with the world, you set the stage for living a life in flow.
What is Flow?
Flow is when everything feels seamless, time seems to fly by, and work… or your workouts feel almost effortless. When you're in flow, there's an ease, a natural rhythm to moving through life. In contrast, there is friction when you are out of alignment with your true self. When friction persists, it can lead to “dis-ease” (or disease), both physically and mentally.
But how do you know when you're in flow, and how do you achieve it, particularly when it comes to exercise and its impact on your mental health?
The Mental Health Benefits of Exercise: More Than Just "Feeling Good"
We know that exercise can improve mood, reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, and even help boost brain function. Here's how exercise affects mental health:
Releases endorphins: These "feel-good" hormones are natural painkillers and mood elevators.
Reduces cortisol: Exercise helps lower cortisol levels. When elevated for long periods, this stress hormone can wreak havoc on our mental and physical health.
Improves sleep: Regular movement helps regulate circadian rhythms, leading to better and more restful sleep.
Boosts self-esteem: Setting and achieving fitness goals, no matter how small, can improve confidence and self-worth.
Enhances cognitive function: Regular movement improves brain health by boosting blood flow and increasing neuroplasticity, helping with memory, focus, and creativity.
While these are all powerful reasons to move, the key is understanding how you move best, how you can incorporate exercise into your life to align with your unique self and bring you into a state of flow.
Exercise and Flow: How to Find Your Sweet Spot
At Life Logic, we believe that the exercise you choose and how you approach movement should feel like they're in flow with who you are, not a battle against yourself. When you're aligned with your unique biology, movement becomes frictionless, something that brings ease, not discomfort. But this doesn't mean there shouldn't be any challenge.
Think of nature: A tree needs just the right amount of resistance from the earth to grow strong roots, yet too much resistance, and it may struggle, it won’t grow “with ease” and it may develop a “disease”. Similarly, we need to introduce a manageable level of resistance, whether in the gym or in life, in order to grow.
Where's the Balance?
Start with Self-Awareness: Before you jump into any exercise regimen, it's critical to understand yourself. What type of movement feels right for you? Do you enjoy intense, fast-paced workouts or prefer slower, more mindful movements like yoga or walking? There's no one-size-fits-all answer. The key is understanding what feels natural and nourishing for you.
Push Your Limits, but Know Your Boundaries: Resistance training, for example, is designed to push your muscles beyond their comfort zone so they can grow stronger. This is true for your mental health as well. Challenge yourself; whether completing a workout, taking on a new task at work, or confronting a fear, but also know when to back off and allow recovery. Growth happens in the balance between challenge and recovery.
Recognise When You're in flow (and When You're Not): When you're in flow, movement feels almost effortless. You're fully engaged and focused, and time flies by. But if every workout feels like a battle, where you're dreading the next move and fighting against your own body, that's a sign of friction. Pay attention to how your body and mind respond during and after exercise.
Integrate Other Elements of Wellness: Your ability to find flow in exercise doesn't exist in isolation. It's influenced by factors like hydration, nutrition, sleep, and even your environment. The gut-brain connection is a prime example of this holistic approach. If your gut health is off, it can directly affect your mental health and your motivation to move.
Flow and Mental Health: Easing into Mental Wellness
When done in alignment with your uniqueness, exercise creates a feedback loop of positive mental health benefits. Moving in a way that's right for you becomes easier, more enjoyable, and something you look forward to. This reduces stress and anxiety and helps to boost your overall mood.
However, you create friction if you constantly push against your natural tendencies and force yourself into an exercise routine that doesn't resonate. This friction can lead to burnout, injury, and a negative impact on your mental health.
So, the answer to "when to push and when to ease" lies in that delicate balance. You should challenge yourself, but the challenge should feel like a natural stretch of your abilities, not a source of constant struggle. Like a tree pushing through the soil to grow strong roots, we need the right amount of resistance to grow, but too much friction will stunt that growth.
Resistance and Resilience: Finding Strength Through Balance
Another key principle we emphasise at Life Logic is the relationship between resistance and resilience. Like building muscle through resistance training, where we apply pressure and load to create growth, life requires moments of challenge and resistance to foster mental and emotional resilience. But just as important as the periods of "work" and effort are the rest and recovery times.
To grow, we need to push our limits. But there's a delicate balance here: we need the right amount of resistance, not too little or too much. Growth happens at the edge of discomfort—where we stretch ourselves, challenge our capacity, and go just a little further than before. This applies not only to physical training but to all aspects of life. Action and movement equal growth and opportunity.
Consider this: nothing is ever truly still in the realm of physics. The word "physic" literally points to the physical nature of reality, where everything is in motion, whether we realise it or not. Even when we're at rest, our bodies are constantly working, even our eyes move rapidly (R.E.M.) during sleep, and our cells' "maintenance crew" is rebuilding and regenerating tissue. The body, even in its quiet moments, is never still. It is continuously repairing, renewing, and preparing for action.
Similarly, we seek moments of stillness in mental health to calm the mind. Still, even in those quiet moments, our minds are processing, healing, and reflecting. It's about experiencing stillness rather than actually stopping. True stillness doesn't exist; even in meditation or rest, our minds work subtler ways to repair and recalibrate.
The key is to understand that resistance and rest go hand in hand. Just as your muscles grow stronger when you give them both the challenge of resistance and the recovery they need to repair, your mental and emotional resilience also thrives when balanced between moments of action and stillness.
If you never push your body or mind, stagnation occurs. In fact, if you're too still for too long, you're not merely staying the same, you're actually deteriorating. Life is dynamic, and without physical, mental, or emotional movement, there is decay. However, if you're constantly pushing without recovery, burnout or breakdown becomes inevitable. Growth happens during rest but only after applying the right amount of resistance.
Final Thoughts: Your Unique Path to Flow and Mental Wellness
In Mental Health Month, let's focus not just on the idea of exercise for mental health but on proper exercise—movements that align with who you are. By embracing your uniqueness, you can find flow, not just in the gym but in life. When you're in flow, your body and mind work together in harmony, reducing stress and enhancing your mental well-being.
At Life Logic, we encourage you to find what works best for you—whether it's strength training, walking, yoga, or any other form of movement. The key is that it feels right for you and supports your mental health, not just in moments of exertion but in everyday life.
Remember, mental and physical health are not separate—they are interconnected. When we move in flow, we grow.
In the end, the dance between resistance and rest builds true strength. You need times dedicated to action—where you push your boundaries, challenge yourself, and move forward. And you equally need times for restoration—where you reflect, heal, and allow your mind and body to recalibrate.
At Life Logic, we help you find that balance, guiding you to understand when to push and rest, both in your physical training and in life. By aligning with your unique needs and tapping into the flow of resistance and recovery, you become stronger and more mentally and physically resilient.