The Exercise Effect

By Jeanette Calara, PT, DPT, MBA, OCS, COMT, GCFP, COS-C

As evidence piles up, the exercise-mental health connection is becoming impossible to ignore. The link between exercise and mood is quite strong. Most often, one would experience a mood-enhancement effect a few minutes after moderate exercise. However, the effects of physical activity are beyond the short-term gains. Evidence shows that exercise can help alleviate long-term depression. It is also found that exercise is comparable to antidepressants for patients with major depressive disorder and preventing relapse. Patients with diabetes are more likely to develop depression and vice versa. Oftentimes diabetes and obesity go hand-in-hand, so it is quite logical that exercise could effectively treat both conditions.
Regular exercise can help patients susceptible to anxiety to less likely to panic as they experience those fight-or-flight sensations.
Exercise works quite effectively in conjunction with other therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy. Biochemically, there are many things that can impact mood.
Exercise alleviates chronic depression by possibly increasing serotonin and normalizing sleep, which is known to have protective effects on the brain. Exercise may boost ones outlook by providing a sense of accomplishment.
It may take a longer course of exercise to alleviate mood disorders such as anxiety or depression.