Not only is exercise good for your physical health, it's good for your mental health as well. Multiple scientific studies show exercise can help reduce anxiety, depression and anger while enhancing good feelings like self-confidence. Individuals commonly see the most benefits to their emotions after weeks of regular exercise done several times a week.
Boost Your Mood
You can boost your mood for half the day with exercise, according to a study presented at the American College of Sports Medicine's 56th Annual Meeting in 2009. Past studies revealed fitness enthusiasts experience an elevated mood one hour after exercising. In this study, researchers asked healthy adults about their emotions one, two, four, eight, 12 and 24 hours after moderately intense exercise at 60 percent of aerobic capacity and compared the results to a control group who did not exercise. All exercising participants experienced an elevated mood irrespective of age, gender or level of fitness, for up to 12 hours after exercising.
Yoga Reduces Anxiety
Doing yoga improves your mood and reduces anxiety better than walking, according to research from the Boston University School of Medicine and published a 2010 issue of the "Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine." Yoga increases the amount of a chemical in your brain commonly prescribed as a treatment for anxiety. People with this mood disorder are commonly deficient in this brain chemical. The researchers hypothesize doing yoga stimulates areas in the brain that have an anti-anxiety effect.
Depression and Tai Chi
Standard depression treatment combined with a weekly tai chi exercise class reduces depression better than standard treatment alone for elderly adults, according to a study by the University of California at Los Angeles and reported in the March 2011 issue of the "American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry." This important finding is good news for elderly people who do not respond to treatment. Two-thirds of the more than two million elderly people suffering from depression who seek treatment fail to find relief with medication, according to Dr. Helen Lavretsky, one of the study's authors.
Reduce Anger
Exercise proteced against an angry mood in 16 male college students rated as high in "trait anger," according to a study presented at the 57th Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine. After cycling for 30 minutes at a moderate intensity, the men who exercised felt less anger when exposed to anger-inducing scenes than those who did not exercise.
References
- "Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine"; Effects of Yoga Versus Walking on Mood, Anxiety, and Brain GABA Levels: A Randomized Controlled MRS Study; Chris C. Streeter, et al.; 2010
- EurekAlert!; Tai Chi Beats Back Depression in the Elderly, Study Shows; March 2011
- American Council on Exercise; Exercise is Good Medicine for Preventing and Reducing an Angry Mood; June 2010
- American Council on Exercise; Boost Your Mood At Least Half The Day With Physical Activity; May 2009
- Fitness.gov; The Influence of Exercise on Mental Health; Daniel M. Landers
