A Boost of Confidence: Exercising the Body and Mind

It is that time again. I have navigated the blogosphere and discovered two posts that were both informative and enlightening. I think it is generally true that all individuals could benefit from a boost of confidence. There are so many ways in which one can acquire that boost, the simplest of which is just a little bit of exercise. A variety of complications make things like volunteering at an organization a rather daunting process, but Anne Mahlum has managed to combine both of these methods rather effortlessly. In "Self-Empowerment Through Running," Dr. John Grohol, of PsychCentral, talks about Ms. Mahlum's remarkable ability to combine her exercise routine and compassion for human kind. At Cognitive Daily, Dave Munger talks about self-esteem building through different forms of exercise, and whether there are any differences in how one builds it. Again, for your convenience, I have posted the comments below and have linked them to their respective websites.

“Self-Empowerment Through Running”
Comment:

Dr. Grohol,
What a powerful message this post and Ms. Mahlum send to us all. I must admit, I was misguided by the title of this post and assumed it was something different altogether, but in the end, it is quite fitting. My one concern is one you bring up yourself, "The most interesting thing to me is that the running club is actually a support group in disguise. Since “support group” often has a negative connotation, people feel more comfortable joining an affinity group." I do not think it is best to front as something other than what an organization is; if what is wrong with a support group is the hidden agenda, like the Alcoholics Anonymous influencing Christianity on its members, then how does that differ from this group? It is not my intention to hamper Ms. Mahlum's efforts in helping the homeless, but your comment put my mental gears into work. Would the homeless not pursue this wonderful opportunity either way? Something that also needs to be taken into consideration is the longevity of this program. Like many other groups, novelty wears out quite quickly and interest in programs feign. What makes this program any different? What ways can we help to further this program? Thank you for this post, which was not only inspiring but informative. Sometimes things like these seem impossible to establish, but people like Ms. Mahlum show us that a little bit of effort and a lot of heart go a long way.

“Is yoga better than other exercise for boosting self-esteem?”
Comment:

Dave,

Thanks for the post. I picked up on a few great tips now! If I had the choice between yoga and walking, I think I'd rather do the walking seeing that the results are the same. Although, in my opinion, the results are not the same. I have taken a few yoga classes, as well as tried to stay fit with walking, and the results are nowhere near each other. Walking did manage to whip me into shape, but yoga gave me that boost of confidence, as well as a rush of endorphins, that walking never did. My results were the opposite of what you posted--I felt much more physically self-confident after yoga than I did with the walking, and much stronger after walking than with yoga because my stamina increased so much. To be fair, in both cases my self-esteem went through the roof after desirable results were achieved, and vice-versa. In response to your perception of exertion for both being equal, hands down yoga is requires much more exertion than walking, at least in my experience. It seems obvious that yoga should require a lot of exertion, even at a beginner level as it requires full body exertion, whereas walking requires only leg work, would you not agree? As you stated "It's also possible that over a longer period or more intense participation, the physical and global self-esteem measures would also rise to significance," so the true difference of effects of yoga and walking on self-esteem are yet to be established, but any boost of confidence and self-esteem is beneficial to everyone.