TheSmoothMedia It is 5:30am; the streets are still, but one man is already on the field – not in pursuit of medals, but peace. For many, engaging in any form of sports or a gym session simply means physical fitness, but for some, that’s where they find their sanity. Fitness is just the beginning. These individuals see sports as what keeps their minds from falling apart.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), sport is proven to be an activity that helps prevent and manage noncommunicable diseases such as stroke, heart disease, diabetes, and several cancers. It also helps prevent hypertension, overweight and obesity and can improve one’s mental health and well-being. This confirms that hitting the gym or partaking in any form of sport isn’t only for the fun of it but is also a form of therapy that benefits both the body and the mind.
Sports Give Structure
Sport offers something that is not often talked about – structure. This is the organised, repetitive routine that sports provide to individuals. The regular training schedules, set game times, rules, etc., become something predictable or certain for people, especially when everything else around feels chaotic or uncertain. When life feels scattered and everything seems blurry, sport becomes a stabiliser. At 5am, you do not have to think twice; you know it is time to jog, hit the gym or head to the field. That alone gives the mind something solid to hold on to.
Knowing that for the next 60 minutes of your day, you won't have to worry about the unpaid school fees, money for various expenses, your broken heart, or any other problems, brings calmness to your body and mind. All there is to do is either run, lift weights, pass the ball or be ready for a pass. During that period, all your worries seem to vanish. Your focus is to be able to score a goal or assist someone, jog without stopping like you mostly do, or be able to lift the weights. There, your mind shifts from pain to performance. The goal is no longer to fix anything, and for once, you feel like you are in control.
Sports as an Emotional Outlet
Sports give people space to release tension, anxiety, stress, pain etc., without needing to speak. It provides an environment where you don’t necessarily have to speak up but not return the same way you came. For 29year old Albert, who has been playing football every evening since JHS 2 till now explained that, aside keeping fit, another major reason for his consistency in playing football for more than a decade is what it does to his mental health. He says, “playing football helps to ease pressure on my mind”. Before and after the match, the teammates gist among themselves, laugh and tease each other such that, by the end of the game, he comes home with a free mind. That’s where he let go of the stress and as someone who hardly make friends, the field becomes his socialization space as well.
Research supports this lived reality. According to an article published by Havard Medical School titled “Exercise is an all-natural treatment to fight depression”, physical activity stimulates the release of endorphins and other brain chemicals that elevate mood and reduce stress. It also states that exercise reduces levels of the body's stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol, and stimulates the production of endorphins.
Sports build Mental Resilience
Sports don’t train just the body, but also the mind. The consistency required in attending one’s gym session or engaging in any kind of sports help individuals to be very disciplined, focused, and committed. Overtime, it becomes a mindset. Also, sports teach people how to deal with failure even beyond the field. It trains the mind to accept that encountering a setback or failure in life is just part of the journey just like days your team loses. The beauty in it is showing up the next day regardless of yesterday’s loss. That’s where resilience is built – pushing through even though it hurts. And that’s one of life’s greatest lessons: to keep moving, to keep trying, and to never let defeat define you.
Sport is more than the games, gym sessions and morning jogs, to some people, that is their survival tools. It provides them with structure, offers a space for mental release and build their minds to keep going regardless. In a world where a lot of people are silently battling with anxiety, stress, pain and pressure, sports become an avenue for healing. The next time you meet someone at the gym or jogging in the morning, remember they may not necessarily be after muscles or flat tummy, but might be chasing peace, clarity, or the will to keep going.
Let’s start seeing sports differently — not just as fitness, but as mental and emotional care. Share this with someone who finds peace through movement. Let them know their healing journey is valid.
Story by: Abigail Acheampomaa
acheampomaaa431@gmail.com
