Everyone has to deal with external stressors. Stress is often blamed for a wide range of negative health effects, but oftentimes stress is a good thing. The effects of stress–both positive and negative–depend on how your body deals with external challenges. You can’t avoid stress. But you can improve your bodily response to it.

It’s not exactly breaking news that exercise strengthens your ability to deal positively with stress. You may have experienced this phenomenon yourself: after a workout, the cares of the day seem to fade a step or two into the background, and you’re better able to put your problems in perspective.

Scientists understand some of the chemistry behind the short term beneficial effects of exercise.  But until recently we knew far less about the longer term biology of exercise and stress resilience.

In this research study, scientists followed people over a 12 month period. They used cortisol levels to measure the effectiveness of someone’s stress response. Cortisol levels are the main hormonal marker of the stress response, and lower levels of cortisol indicate that your system is able to manage stress while using fewer of its inner resources.

People who exercised 150 minutes per week had lower levels of cortisol overall, not only after they’d exercised. Regular exercise served to “stress-proof” their bodies. That means that the benefits of regular exercise continue to build up in your body, accumulating money in your “health” bank that continues to earn compound interest.

If health is the question, exercise is the answer.

Dr. Lavine has been an innovator in the use of movement and touch to promote health since 1981. He practices in New York City and Princeton, NJ.