Published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers from the University of South Australia analyzed over 1,039 trials and 927 reviews with a total of approximately 130,000 participants and found that exercise is better treatment for depression, anxiety, and feelings of distress than drugs.

They found that exercise interventions that were 12 weeks or shorter were especially effective in improving mental health symptoms. Not only does exercise outperform medications in efficacy, it also outperforms medications in speed of effectiveness.

In addition to people with depression, they found exercise was also beneficial in people who are pregnant and postpartum, healthy individuals, and people with HIV and renal diseases.

“Our review shows that physical activity interventions can significantly reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety in all clinical populations, with some groups showing even greater signs of improvement,” states lead researcher of the study, Dr. Ben Singh.

The best kind of exercises they found were high intensity exercises in short and mid-duration bursts were most effective. However, the study revealed that all kind of exercises were beneficial.

Healthcare professionals continue to underestimate the power of exercise and do not put enough emphasis in it, especially when treating mental health.

“Physical activity is known to help improve mental health. Yet despite the evidence, it has not been widely adopted as a first-choice treatment,” said Dr. Singh.

You know what’s sadder than being depressed? Being depressed and complacent about it thinking some drug is going to fix your problems. Get off your butt and start exercising is a great first step to addressing your depression issues.

B Singh et al. Effectiveness of physical activity interventions for improving depression, anxiety and distress: an overview of systematic reviews. British Journal of Sports Medicine. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2022-106195