PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND STRESS - A BIDIRECTIONAL RELATIONSHIP

Stres je sastavni dio života koji bitno utječe na njegovu kvalitetu. I dok stres uobičajeno percipiramo kao nešto loše, hormoni stresa su zapravo našim davnim precima bili nužni za preživljavanje. Nailazimo na mnogobrojne definicije ovoga pojma, no summa summarum stres možemo definirati kao skup tjelesnih i psihičkih promjena koje nastaju kao posljedica vanjskih i unutrašnjih stresora koji remete homeostatsku ravnotežu organizma. Uzimajući u obzir da je stres nužan dio svakodnevice, od važnosti nam je shvatiti i savladati adaptaciju na stres, što je pod nadzorom tzv. stresnog sustava koji obuhvaća složene stanične, molekularne i neuroendokrine strukture i procese. Način nošenja sa stresorima pod velikim je utjecajem okolišnih čimbenika, kao i crta ličnosti te genetike. Reakcija na stresore nije uvijek negativna, odnosno postoji i pozitivna strana stresa koja potiče bolje adaptacijske procese u organizmu. S druge strane, negativna posljedica djelovanja stresa može biti maladaptacija, tj. bolest, što je i dio rasprave u ovome radu. Redovito umjereno vježbanje može biti važan čimbenik u ublažavanju negativnog učinka kroničnog stresa na zdravlje kroz optimizaciju fizioloških promjena izazvanih kratkotrajnim ili akutnim odgovorom na stres. Isto tako i intenzitet vježbanja pokazao se kao ključan faktor u subjektivnoj percepciji stresa osoba koje vježbaju umjerenim intenzitetom u odnosu na one osobe koje uopće ne vježbaju.Stress is an integral part of life, which significantly affects its quality. And while we usually perceive stress as something bad, stress hormones are precisely those that our ancient ancestors needed to survive. We come across many definitions of this term, but summa summarum stress can be defined as a set of physical and mental changes that occur as a result of external and internal stressors that disrupt physiological balance of the organism. Given that stress is a necessary part of everyday life, it is important for us to understand and master adaptation to stress, which is controlled by the so-called stress system that encompasses complex cellular, molecular, and neuroendocrine structures and processes. The way an individual will deal with stressors is heavily influenced by environmental factors, as well as personality traits and genetics. The reaction to stressors is not always negative, i.e., there is a positive side of stress, which has the task of causing better adaptation. On the other hand, the negative consequences of exposure to stress can cause maladaptation, i.e., disease, which is part of the discussion in this paper. Regular moderate exercise can be an important factor in mitigating the negative effect of chronic stress on health through optimizing physiological changes caused by short-term or acute stress responses. Likewise, exercise intensity has been shown to be a key factor in the subjective perception of stress by people who exercise at a moderate intensity compared to those who do not exercise at all