Any person in a position of responsibility knows what stress is and managing stress is an increasingly popular theme on management courses. They have no time to unwind because they are under continuous time pressure, they are tense and because they want to do their best, they hurry through the day trying to do as much as possible. They also have a packed diary of events in their free time. They have not had any time for regular exercise for some time - this is a common scenario to countless people, but it does not discourage them.

In this day and age, stress is a synonym for extremely busy, successful people. We tend to forget that stress can cause illness.

The consequences of strain are metabolism complaints, premature ageing, a weakened immune system, allergies, stomach ulcers, cancer and heart attacks.

Stress is caused by strain (“stress factors”). Stress factors are noise, lack of sleep, time pressure, dissatisfaction, chronic financial worries, despair, excessive professional demands, anxiety and agitation. Particularly demanding strains are a loss in the family or of a friend, divorce, redundancy and moving house.

Try and control your sensitivity to stress
Stress factors mount up. A messed-up appointment or an unproductive company encounter may lead to arguments with colleagues and the usual time demands.

Stress comes in no objective size. Situations, in which numerous people are under pressure, need not cause you stress. The number of times you feel ill depends on your stress stability. If you are content within yourself and have a positive outlook to life, it will not be easy to throw you. If you do become stressed, however, you can eradicate this built-up stress with simple fitness techniques.

The main points to note are:

Avoid stress
Do not get perturbed if, for example, the telephone line is constantly busy. You should not let things that you cannot do anything about cause you harm. Transform your anger or disappointment at failed negotiations into motivation. Stress is generally a matter of attitude and you are the one who controls this. Keep a diary. Every day write down the things that make you irritated, frustrated and envious. This way you can control your susceptibility to stress and react in a calmer manner the next time. Avoiding stress caused by events that are beyond your control is a fundamental subject in time management courses. If you cannot manage to do this, then simply try another technique.

Take deep breaths
If you are angry or in a particularly stressful situation, you instinctively breathe irregularly. In moments of severe shock and tension you do not even breathe at all for a short time. If you are feeling good, you breathe slowly and regularly.

By focusing on your breathing you can directly influence your mood. When concentrating on your breathing, make sure your body position is correct: your spine should be straight - back, neck and the back of your head should be in line. Your feet should be parallel and the soles of your feet should be straight on the ground. Now take a slow, deep breath. First of all, fill your stomach with air, then your rib cage. Now breathe out quietly. Feel how your stomach first subsides and then your rib cage. Do this exercise whenever you are stressed or angry.

Tense your muscles
Every mental tension triggers muscular tension. Relax your muscles. This will eliminate momentary stress. If you are working at your desk for a long period of time or are rushing around madly, your muscles often go into a painful cramp. Make a conscious effort to tense these cramping muscles. The important thing to do is to continue breathing calmly. This takes a bit of practice since most people tend to hold their breath when they have muscle cramp.

After a few breaths of concentrated tensing, suddenly untense the muscles. You will notice that the cramped muscles relax, the body is stimulated and the stress hormone, cortisol, quickly disappears. You will be able to do this exercise anywhere and without spending too much time.

Meditate with music
Music is a balm for every stressed soul. There is no simpler system to eliminate negative feelings and exhaustion after a hard day’s work than by listening to good music. Listen to comforting and pleasant music, preferably classical or meditation music. Let the calm, restful sounds float over you. Sit or lie down and close your eyes. Do not do anything else but listen to the music.

Move about
Stress causes a loss of oxygen. The body and mind’s productivity sinks. By moving about and working your muscles you will increase the supply of oxygen to the body. Even small changes to your daily schedule will help. Avoid taking the lift. Use the stairs. This will get your circulation going. Whether you prefer competitive team sports such as football or handball or would rather work out on a running machine, it’s all the same. The imperative thing is that you keep your body running in good order.

There are other techniques for managing stress in yourself and others that you manage that are taught on good management courses.

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