Regular Exercise Might Be The Key To Work-Life Balance

Regular Exercise Might Be The Key To Work-Life Balance

Here’s one more reason regular exercise is a must: Working out might actually make juggling your work and personal life easier, according to research from Harvard Business Review.

Fitting in exercise might be difficult when you don’t have a lot of time to spare, but it can actually help with the demands that are sucking up your time. In addition to reducing stress, the people surveyed in the Harvard study who regularly exercised had greater self-efficacy:

[W]e found exercise helping work-home integration via increased self-efficacy. The term refers to the sense that one is capable of taking things on and getting them done — and although self-efficacy is a matter of self-perception, it has real impact on reality. According to psychologist Albert Bandura, people with high self-efficacy are less likely to avoid difficult tasks or situations, and more likely to see them as challenges to be mastered. Our research suggests that people who exercise regularly enjoy greater self-efficacy, and it carries over into their work and home roles. The theory resonates with Matthew. As he puts it, “an hour of exercise creates a feeling that lasts well beyond that hour spent at the gym.” Or take it from Luke, who competes in triathlons: “When I accomplish something during an exercise training session, I feel more confident in my professional and personal life.”

If your commitment to exercise regularly has started to wane, this is just another nudge to get moving.

How Regular Exercise Helps You Balance Work and Family [Harvard Business Review via Inc]


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