Already have an account? Stress is everywhere in our lives, hitting us from all directions on a regular basis. Its sources are endless: a demanding job, a troubled relationship, lingering financial concerns … fill in the blank. These are the everyday stresses that, if persistent over time, can cause irreparable bodily harm. Acute, traumatic bouts of stress — witnessing a horrific event or being in a life-threatening situation, for example — can be equally as damaging albeit over a much shorter time frame. Such psychological stresses are unavoidable. In most cases, you have little control over their occurrence or timing, which makes it all the more important to fight these stresses with, well, more stress, the kind you intentionally bring on yourself: physical stress in the form of exercise.