Exercise For A Mood Boost

The benefits of exercise aren't only physical. Of course, exercise can do amazing things for your body, such as toning up your muscles — both the ones you can see and the ones you can't (your heart is a muscle!). But if you suffer from depression or anxiety, a growing body of evidence shows that regular exercise can really help improve your symptoms. In fact, believe it or not, research has shown that exercise may be just as effective as antidepressant drugs at reducing depression! It can also play an important role in preventing a relapse, whether you were initially treated with drugs, therapy, exercise, or a combination. Exercise isn't meant to replace medical treatment of these problems, but it certainly can't hurt your efforts. As for how it works, experts aren't exactly sure yet, but exercise may raise the levels of certain mood-enhancing neurotransmitters in the brain, boost feel-good endorphins, and/or reduce the levels of stress hormones in your body. It can also release tension in your muscles, improve the quality of your sleep, and raise your body temperature, which can calm you down. The emotional benefits of exercise can include increased confidence, social interaction, and distraction from unpleasant thoughts. The amount of physical activity recommended in the Living Well program — at least 30 minutes per day, most days of the week — is also the amount of activity that's generally thought to significantly improve depression symptoms. But it can be hard to motivate yourself to exercise if you're depressed, so keep in mind that even shorter bouts of activity can empower you and boost your mood. Exercise can also take longer than medication to have an effect on depression, but if you stick with it for a few weeks, you may start to feel some real benefits.