Can someone please explain how weighlifting figures into this ? It is rated ahead of Ritalin .. so does that imply lifting heavy weights will improve focus during doing non-physical tasks?
This is in contrast to biking or rowing at a moderate pace (pusing myself and getting pretty sweaty but not collapsing or wanting to barf) for an hour once or twice a week. If I do this, I am still less fidgety but I feel more mentally fatigued later on the day, and sometimes the morning after, I exercise. I attribute this to nutrition/glucose levels and hydration, but even drinking a ton of water and snacking won't fully ameliorate the issues. The same thing happens after a weekend of playing hard, like kayaking one day and hiking with my daughter in my backpack the next day. I'm often pretty unproductive on Monday (oh well... ;)
What works best for me is moderate weight lifting followed by like 30 min of moderate rowing or biking, twice during the work week. Although I might feel a bit more depleted after rowing than not, my overall energy level is higher than if I skip the cardio, and I recover more quickly from my weekend activities.
Weightlifting requires focusing on moving heavy things. It's hard to worry about your taxes or your job while you're pushing a significant portion of your body weight away from your face.
That gives you a break from the things that chronically stress you out, by replacing it with a transient acute stress.
That will definitely help your overall stress levels decrease. Plus improving your mood, your aesthetics, and your health all work together to give you more tools to improve your life outlook with.