EDMONTON -- Elyas is a fighter.

He trains often at Champs Boxing Studio in Edmonton.

"For me specifically, it's getting out of my head," he explained. "It's like in the moment and it's happening and I'm doing it for me."

Behind the heavy bag and boxing gloves, Elyas is also fighting anxiety and depressive moods.

"It feels like you're digging yourself in a hole and you kind of surround yourself with this dark haze, where you can't really see anything else past that," he told CTV News Edmonton. "That has been a constant struggle for me and I've been trying to find ways to understand myself, understand coping mechanisms, know what I can do for myself to help myself get through that.   

Getting active has become his salvation. Weightlifting, running, spin and boxing help him manage his mental health.

"After I finish something, no matter how hard, it feels so good," he said.

For some physicians, exercise is a preferred first option for treating mild mental health disorders. And it can be much more accessible people than other medical interventions.

"Anything is better than nothing when it comes to exercise and mental health," psychiatry resident Dr. Rayven Snodgrass said. "With exercise, you actually get a lot more blood flow to the brain, a lot more oxygen and nutrients delivered to the brain."

Elyas is continuing to build a supportive community and to share the benefits of exercise to help improve mental health.

"I know, it's a challenging thing to sometimes get out of bed from the start of the day, but being able to push yourself and being able to get there even though sometimes you don't want to… I think there is always that rewarding feeling," he said. "When you're walking out through that door of the gym or any class that you do, I did it, I finished it, I accomplished it."

"It helps a lot."

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Geoff Hastings