Running can help dissipate problems as small as a spat with a coworker and as big as a traumatic event, according to Thom Hartmann, a psychotherapist turned radio talk-show host. In his book Walking Your Blues Away, he explains that stress can overload the hippocampus of the brain, stopping a memory from being processed. Actively remembering a difficult moment while running provokes nerve impulses that help you view them in the past tense. Below is Hartmann's five-step technique.

Define the issue.
Healthy Habits for Running and a Longer Life.

CA Notice at Collection.
We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back.

Tell the story.
Visualize your problem. Concentrate on it--on and off for five to 10 minutes at a time--during your run. Take breaks from it, and then return to it. Ease into it, so it doesn't completely overwhelm you.

Runners Share What Motivates Them to Go for a Run.
The image and the emotional value of the memory will start to fade. Your pain will become a past experience. This may happen on a single run or over the course of several.

Other Hearst Subscriptions.
Restate your story, and see how it's changed and feels less traumatic. Tell someone else about it, or write it down.