![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/F7AQC2NIXLNX4ULSF3ABNPDZL4.jpg\")
A hot yoga class at Bode NYC\u2019s Upper East Side studio in Manhattan, Feb. 27, 2025. HIROKO MASUIKE\/NYT<\/p>\n\u201cIt\u2019s a little bit of a formula. You want outlets that allow you to be active, creative, reflective, emotive, and restorative,\u201d said Mayner, 34.<\/p>\n
Above all, reducing anxiety is about grounding yourself in the present moment and using any resource available to loosen the grip of worry and fear, Mayner said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnxiety about the future is the threat to being present, and practicing gratitude is the antidote to that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Here are eight simple things people can do to reduce feelings of anxiety and unease, according to Mayner and fitness experts.<\/p>\n
A hot yoga class at Bode NYC\u2019s Upper East Side studio in Manhattan, Feb. 27, 2025. HIROKO MASUIKE\/NYT<\/p>\n
Trainer Kristin Callahan<\/a> helps clients at Mike\u2019s Fitness Jamaica Plain deal with anxiety through exercise and getting <\/b>in tune with their bodies. Callahan, who has been diagnosed with <\/b>generalized anxiety disorder, said physical activity of any kind brings her relief when she feels like her head is \u201clocked up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cExercise produces endorphins, so we always feel better after we move, no matter what we do,\u201d said Callahan, who has worked as a trainer for 10 years.<\/p>\n In Brooklyn, N.Y., trainer Matt Danner focuses on mobility exercises with clients, including stretching and breathing.<\/p>\n Holding a stretch engages and calms the central nervous system, which sends pulses of energy through your muscles, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s almost as if you\u2019re tuning out,\u201d while holding the stretch, controlling what your muscles are able to do in response to your nervous system\u2019s instructions, Danner, 33, said.<\/p>\n Do these two breathing exercises<\/p>\n At their worst, anxiety and panic attacks can make it feel difficult to breathe, as if a heavy weight is on your chest and throat.<\/p>\n Breathing exercises can bring a measure of <\/b>relief, Danner said.<\/p>\n He recommends inhaling for four seconds, holding the breath for seven seconds, and exhaling for eight seconds, a strategy developed by Andrew Weil<\/a>, an integrative medicine doctor at the University of Arizona.<\/p>\n Mayner incorporates what she calls \u201cgood, better, best\u201d breaths, in which you take three \u201cincreasingly deeper and cleansing\u201d breaths in succession.<\/p>\n \u201cSetting a conscious rhythm to your breathing can be pretty powerful for immediate stress relief,\u201d Danner said.<\/p>\n If you feel powerless, take action<\/p>\n The current political and financial turmoil <\/b>is likely causing many people to feel helpless, Mayner said.<\/p>\n Fear about the future is understandable <\/b>and to some degree inevitable, said Callahan, 49. But you don\u2019t have to let it overwhelm you.<\/p>\n \u201cThe answer to anxiety is action; if you feel like you\u2019re doing something, it\u2019s going to help your anxiety calm down,\u201d the trainer said.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re worried about grocery prices, budgeting, or retirement savings, there are helpful online tools you can access or financial advisers you can call, Mayner said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere might be answers to those questions out there. We just have to seek them,\u201d Mayner said.<\/p>\n Talk to someone about how you feel<\/p>\n Feelings about <\/b>worrisome <\/b>events should be acknowledged, Mayner said, and we should try to express our emotions in healthy ways.<\/p>\n Talking to a friend or a professional therapist about what you\u2019re going through will likely make you feel better, she said.<\/p>\n Bonding with a friend can build community, which Mayner described as \u201can antidote to the isolation that can be brought about by anxiety.\u201d<\/p>\n At the same time, she said, people should be mindful whether their social circles are contributing to their anxiety.<\/p>\n \u201cPotentially reassess the community you have around you,\u201d Mayner said.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to go to the gym to exercise \u2014 sometimes just going for a walk <\/b>can <\/b>bring enormous benefits.<\/p>\n Now that it\u2019s spring, simply being outside with a friend can positively affect one\u2019s mood, Mayner said.<\/p>\n \u201cSit in the sunshine,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Callahan said she sometimes sees gym-goers take work meetings on the treadmill or watch movies on their phone.<\/p>\n Yes, working out isn\u2019t always the most pleasant activity, but we should try to give exercise our undivided attention, Callahan said.<\/p>\n \u201cI get it, working out can be hard. Maybe it\u2019s something you don\u2019t like,\u201d she said. \u201cBut let it be its own thing.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayner said she recently started doing jigsaw <\/b>puzzles, including a colorful 750-piecer featuring fruits, vegetables, and ice cream.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople in my life will help me, and we\u2019ll sit down together, and it\u2019s been really helpful to have something else to focus on,\u201d Mayner said.<\/p>\n Slam a medicine ball on the ground<\/p>\n Callahan said her favorite anxiety-relieving exercise is throwing around a medicine ball, which can range in weight from 2 to 25 pounds.<\/p>\n Pick the ball up, raise it above your head if able, squeeze it between your hands, and then throw it to the floor as hard as you can, Callahan recommended. The exercise is \u201chard to mess up, feels really good, and you get a lot of stress out that way,\u201d she said with a laugh.<\/p>\n For the best form, release the ball at shoulder height, Callahan said, and bend your knees into a slight squat.<\/p>\n Then \u201cthrow it through the floor like you\u2019re trying to break it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Sure beats doomscrolling.<\/p>\n Claire Thornton can be reached at claire.thornton@globe.com<\/a>. Follow Claire on X @claire_thornto<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Any](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/P37S53U6Y5HVVKCHZ2OXOFQZEY.jpeg\")
Any physical movement releases endorphins, which are the body’s natural mood boosters, said Kristin Callahan, a fitness trainer in Jamaica Plain.Sophie\/Adobe<\/p>\n![\"Spend](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/OYFH7DFZCL6W6625NEDHJ36N2Y.jpg\")
Spend more time outside to reduce feelings of worry, fear, and anxiety that may be building up inside you, said therapist Daja Mayner.Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe<\/p>\n![\"Endicott](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/KXLCSA4UFQMWI5EKOXWCYWDPBM.jpg\")
Endicott College hockey player Jack Smiley, 24, does medicine ball exercises at Endicott College.Stan Grossfeld\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n