Welcome to the Get Fit Guys quick and dirty tips to get moving and shape up.

My name is Brock Armstrong. I'm the Get Fit Guy and you know what? Science and anecdotal evidence

both agree that just a few minutes of exercise per day can boost your current mood and protect against future

bouts of depression. That's right. Even if your gym, your rec center, pool, or dance class

is currently unavailable, it is still possible, not to mention really important, to get your

body up and moving. Doing activities

that raise your heart rate, challenge your muscles, and move your body beyond its normal

range of motion, and by that I mean challenging your mobility, your coordination, and your balance.

Well, it not only helps you stay fit, but it can also boost your mood,

lower stress levels, and, like I said, prevent future bouts of depression. It's true,

even simple aerobic exercises like walking, housework, or playing with your kids or your pets,

can encourage your body to release endorphins.

And endorphins are a group of hormones that are secreted within your brain and your nervous

system that trigger a number of, well, almost magical physiological functions.

Those wondrous functions include reducing pain and stress, warding off anxiety and feelings of depression,

boosting self-esteem, and even improving your sleep.

With direct benefits like that, well, it's not hard to imagine how exercise can help manage depression as well.

And luckily, thanks to the scientists at the American

Psychiatric Association, well, we don't have to imagine. We have the research. In fact, a recent

study on exercise and the prevention of depression aimed to determine whether or not exercise

provides protection against new onset depression. It also aimed to determine whether or not exercise provides protection against new onset depression.

It also aimed to pinpoint the intensity and the amount of exercise that's required to gain

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