8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise

by Christina Hibbert, Babette Rothschild (Foreword by)

Overview

Inspiring strategies from a wellness expert for keeping fit, relieving stress, and strengthening emotional well-being.

We all know that exercise is good for physical health, but recently, a wealth of data has proven that exercise also contributes to overall mental well-being. Routine exercise alleviates stress and anxiety, moderates depression, relieves chronic pain, and improves self-esteem.

In this inspiring book, Christina Hibbert, a clinical psychologist and expert on women's mental health, grief, and self-esteem, explains the connections between exercise and mental well-being and offers readers step-by-step strategies for sticking to fitness goals, overcoming motivation challenges and roadblocks to working out, and maintaining a physically and emotionally healthy exercise regimen. This book will help readers to get moving, stay moving, and maintain the inspiration they need to reap the mental health benefits of regular exercise. The 8 keys include improving self-esteem with exercise, exercising as a family, getting motivated, changing how you think about exercise, and the FITT principle for establishing an effective exercise routine.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393711226
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	04/25/2016
Series:	8 Keys to Mental Health
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Christina G. Hibbert, PsyD, is the author of the award-winning memoir This is How We Grow and Who Am I Without You. She is a former fitness instructor and current clinical psychologist, specializing in exercise and mental health, grief/loss, parenting, self-worth and personal growth. Dr. Hibbert is a dynamic speaker, host of the radio show, Motherhood, founder of the Arizona Postpartum Wellness Coalition, and producer of the internationally-sold DVD, Postpartum Couples. She, her husband, and their six children live in Flagstaff, AZ. Learn more about Dr. Hibbert through her popular website and blog, "The Psychologist, The Mom, & Me," on www.DrChristinaHibbert.com.

Babette Rothschild, MSW, LCSW is an internationally recognized PTSD specialist and best-selling author of seven books translated into eighteen languages, including her new offerings Help for the Helper Updated + Expanded and the 8 Keys to Safe Trauma Recovery Workbook. Babette is also the creator and Series Editor of W. W. Norton’s 8 Keys to Mental Health Series. She currently lives in Los Angeles, California.

Table of Contents

Foreword Babette Rothschild ix

Acknowledgments xiii

Introduction xv

Part 1 Understand

Key 1 Heal Your Mind and Body with Exercise 1

Key 2 Improve Your Self-Esteem with Exercise 32

Key 3 Exercise As a Family 55

Part 2 Prepare

Key 4 Get Motivated 87

Key 5 Change How You Think About Exercise 123

Key 6 Overcome Roadblocks 147

Part 3 Exercise for Life

Key 7 Get FITT-Physically and Mentally 185

Key 8 Implement Your Vision and Flourish 212

Appendix A CDC Exercise Recommendations 237

Appendix B Mental Health Across the Lifespan 240

References 250

Index 267

Editorial Reviews

03/07/2016
Clinical psychologist Hibbert (Who Am I Without You?) has created a useful and supportive exercise guide aimed at helping readers with mental health problems. She begins with a reminder that mental illness affects many people and often goes undiagnosed, as well as an explanation of the link between mental and physical fitness. As Hibbert makes clear, she has not written a workout regimen or weight-loss how-to, but a guide to using exercise to become both mentally and physically stronger. This book is divided into three parts containing eight “keys” in total: part one focuses on understanding what exercise offers, part two primes the mind for success, and part three details how to develop and adhere to an exercise program. Specific topics include “Improve Your Self-Esteem with Exercise” and “Exercise as a Family” in part one, “Change How You Think About Exercise” in part two, and “Implement Your Vision and Flourish” in part three. Sprinkled throughout Hibbert’s compelling and easily comprehensible facts are self-assessment “reflection questions.” This is an enlightening and empowering instrument for people who have struggled with mental illness. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"This book is not only about improving your mental health through exercise, it is about having a nurturing and healthy relationship with yourself. . . . Hibbert provides information in a very thorough, thoughtful, and systematic way. . . . [She] helps us re-evaluate our plan, gives us tools to change self-talk, and get back on track."

PsychCentral

"These 8 keys hold the potential to change your life! In this wonderful book, Dr. Hibbert provides us with effective and easy-to-implement tools that allow the mind and the body to unite, change, and heal. A must-read for anyone seeking to change their bodies in a holistic way."

Dr. Shefali Tsabary

"I love this book because it combines solid research with practical, easy-to-follow steps to achieve the motivation and skills to exercise for better mental health. Being at your ‘personal best’ and, for parents, being a great role model to your children, means taking care of yourself first. If you’re serious about getting fit mentally and physically, this book will help you to flourish!"

Dr. Rosina McAlpine

"An incredible, accessible, and useful tool for ANYONE hoping to get exercising. Dr. Hibbert offers guidance, support, and tangible solutions to assist the reader through physical or mental roadblocks in order to strive to be their best self. I can't imagine anyone finishing the book without finding themself an improved individual. I'm grateful it has been written so that more people can benefit from exercise and tackle it through these carefully designed steps."

Dana Pieper

"Exercise is a magic pill for mental well-being; it clears your mind, calms your body, and makes you feel good about YOU and what you have accomplished. Dr. Hibbert has captured this mind-body connection, and why we must all move toward improved mental health through exercise."

Kathy Kaehler

"As a therapist, I’m a big proponent of exercise for its positive effects on mood. I frequently talk to my clients about the positive effect of exercise on the body and mind. But even when you know all the positives, you don’t always fully utilize exercise as a way to get or stay mentally well. This is why 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise is such a useful tool. . . . [I]t’s full of reflection questions, writing prompts, and action items. . . . [G]reat for those of us who want to experience more of the benefits of exercise, but need a bit of help creating a plan and overcoming the mental blocks to doing so."

Sharon Martin

"A delightful synopsis of why exercise is so essential to our mental health. With a narrative that is both a pleasure to read and superbly sensitive to the common barriers that get in our way, Dr. Hibbert shows the reader how to harness the motivation for self-care and well-being. Hibbert's clinical skills and down-to-earth guidance can make a believer out of the most resistant exerciser!"

Karen Kleiman

"Exercise is essential in maintaining good health—both physical and mental. . . . Hibbert’s book should help readers stick with a successful plan."

Booklist

"The 8 Keys books series provides clear, concise, empirically supported evidence for anyone from beginners to experts; 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise is certainly no exception to this mantra. . . . Dr. Hibbert works through the process of change with an array of exercises and reflection questions that ease even the most ambivalent reader into the process. . . . [A]n eye-opening read not only for those searching for the motivation to commit to adding exercise to their routine, but for anyone striving towards self-empowerment. Dr. Hibbert synthesizes a large body of research into a captivating argument for how and why exercise serves as an immensely powerful mechanism for improving mental wellbeing."

Somatic Psychotherapy Today