How Exercise Can Boost Your Mood

Exercise has officially been listed as a treatment option for depression by the American Psychiatric Association as either a stand alone treatment or combined with standard treatments. Anxiety and Depression are affecting people at an alarming rate, which means finding quality means to manage the symptoms is important. However, standard medication based treatments may not always be the route someone wants to go.

Randomized studies have found evidence that aerobic exercise as well as strength training can benefit those with depression and have shown to improve symptoms within 4 weeks. The CDC recommends 150 minutes of exercise per week.

Why does exercise boost your mood? When you workout, your body release chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins interact with receptors in your brain and reduce your perception of pain. In addition, endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body similar to morphine. This happens because endorphins bind to the same neuron receptors that some pain medicines bind to. However, unlike some pain medicines, the activation of these receptors by the bodies endorphins does not lead to addiction.