On Exercise, Mental well-being and Mission

This reflection is the second part in our series on some changes that have been clinically shown to improve people’s mental well-being and how they relate to our lives in faith. It should go without saying that these reflections do not seek to encourage people to withdraw from existing mental health arrangements, but rather to encourage us all to consider changes that may well be beneficial. In a similar note, it needs to be noted that seeking your medical practitioner’s advice is vital before making sudden or significant lifestyle choices.

That being said, the article by Dr Roger Walsh notes that just as exercise offers benefits that lower the risk of certain physical diseases and can be used as part of the treatment for existing disorders, it also offers both preventative and therapeutic benefits on a demonstrable level.

In terms of prevention, exercise has been found to reduce the risk of depression as well as diseases of mental decline such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. Among older people, the improvement found in people’s lives after exercise is undertaken includes a marked improvement in the executive functions of planning and coordination. It should be warned, however, that while the benefits of exercise for physical health can be seen at a lower level, the cognitive benefits of exercise are best seen with exercise activities of over 30 minutes duration and of a higher intensity (Janetzki recommends a level where it is difficult to hold a conversation) . For many of us, this is one of the changes best undertaken in association with appropriate professionals.

Of all the beneficial changes raised in the article by Walsh, this is one of two where the Christian tradition has historically shown ambivalence. In recent weeks, we have been reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans, where the body (“the flesh”) is set against the world of the spirit. This can be seen, particularly in Romans 8, where we are chosen to choose between things of the flesh and things of God.  It may be for these reasons that the tendency of Christian tradition has been to deprive the body as part of discipline.

However, there is a second view of our bodies in scripture that may lead us to choose a more beneficial way of living both for our bodies and our minds. This is the view of our body as a temple (e.g. 1 Corinthians 6:19). If we see our body as the residence of God, we are called to treat this earthly shell of ours with care and respect.

If we see ourselves as participating in carrying God’s mission into the world, we offer our bodies to God’s service. If we adopt this view of our bodies, the act of exercise is not an act of developing vanity or carnality (literally translated from the Latin as flesh-ness) but rather an act of devotion and preparation to do God’s work in the world. I must admit that my temple is not in the best of shape, but am doing my best on the renovations, and hope you can see the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of doing this too.