{"id":247798,"date":"2026-01-16T12:11:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T12:11:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/247798\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T12:11:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T12:11:18","slug":"exercise-shows-similar-results-to-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/247798\/","title":{"rendered":"Exercise Shows Similar Results to Therapy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"PersonShare on Pinterest<\/a>A recent review shows that exercise may be nearly as effective as therapy for depression. Image Credit: Oleg Breslavtsev\/Getty ImagesA recently updated Cochrane review found that exercise may provide similar results for depression as therapy. Exercise is a low cost, widely available option that has various other benefits. This makes it an attractive option for helping to manage symptoms of depression. Research indicates that exercise can have a positive impact on overall mental health. <\/p>\n

Regular exercise offers numerous benefits, particularly for mental health. <\/p>\n

Now, researchers say exercise may help reduce depression symptoms as effectively as other first-line treatments.<\/p>\n

A recently updated Cochrane review<\/a> found that exercise yielded similar results to psychological therapy. When compared to antidepressants<\/a>, however, the evidence was less clear.<\/p>\n

Depression<\/a> is one of the most common mental health conditions in the United States, affecting around 21 million adults<\/a>. In 2021, approximately 61% of U.S. adults experiencing depression received treatment. <\/p>\n

Exercise<\/a> is a low cost option for symptom management that is widely available, making it an ideal treatment option for individuals and their prescribing healthcare team.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur findings suggest that exercise appears to be a safe and accessible option for helping to manage symptoms of depression,\u201d lead study author Andrew Clegg<\/a>, PhD, professor of geriatric medicine at the University of Leeds said in a press release<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis suggests that exercise works well for some people, but not for everyone, and finding approaches that individuals are willing and able to maintain is important,\u201d Clegg continued.<\/p>\n

The review examined 73 randomized controlled trials that included nearly 5,000 adults with depression. <\/p>\n

The examined studies compared exercise with control interventions or no treatment, as well as with antidepressant<\/a> medications and psychological therapies. <\/p>\n

The results showed a moderate benefit of reducing symptoms of depression when compared to no treatment or controlled intervention. When exercise was compared to psychological therapy<\/a>, it had a similar effect. This was based on moderate-certainty evidence from 10 trials. <\/p>\n

The evidence in comparison to antidepressants was limited and of low certainty. However, it did show there may be similar effects on depression symptoms<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The long-term effects are still unclear, as few studies have followed participants after treatment. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhile it seems that long-term studies need to be done to further study this complex topic, this review can provide encouragement on the benefits of additional tools, such as exercise, in managing depression,\u201d said Menije Boduryan-Turner<\/a>, PsyD, licensed psychologist and founder of Embracing You Therapy, who wasn\u2019t involved in the review. <\/p>\n

Rod Mitchell<\/a>, MC, MSc, a registered psychologist and founder of Emotions Therapy Calgary, in Alberta, Canada, who wasn\u2019t involved in the review, agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe certainty is rated \u2018low\u2019 to \u2018moderate\u2019 due to methodological challenges \u2014 many studies lacked blinded assessors, adequate randomisation concealment, or intention-to-treat analysis,\u201d Mitchell told Healthline. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d caution against reading this as \u2018exercise is just as good as therapy,’\u201d he continued. \u201cTherapy rewires thought patterns and processes underlying wounds. Medication adjusts neurochemistry. Exercise resets the nervous system. These aren\u2019t interchangeable tools competing for the same job,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n

This review allows clinicians permission to take exercise seriously as a frontline intervention, rather than simply a \u201clifestyle recommendation\u201d that is tacked on to the end of a session, Mitchell noted. <\/p>\n

Other research<\/a> supports the notion that physical activity can be beneficial for depressive symptoms. <\/p>\n

People with high levels of activity may have a 17% lower risk of depression. Those with low cardiorespiratory fitness<\/a> may also have a 64% higher risk of developing depression. This shows that a sedentary lifestyle<\/a> may lead to a greater potential for developing symptoms of depression. <\/p>\n

A 2024 systematic review<\/a> suggested that there are three potential ways that regular exercise can help manage depression: <\/p>\n

reducing inflammation<\/a>, which can be associated with symptoms of depressionregulating circadian rhythms<\/a>, which are often disrupted in people with depressionimproving sleep<\/a> patterns, which can help regulate mood<\/a> and energy levels<\/p>\n

\u201cExercise can help people with depression, but if we want to find which types work best, for who and whether the benefits last over time, we still need larger, high-quality studies,\u201d Clegg said in the news release. \u201cOne large, well-conducted trial is much better than numerous poor quality small trials with limited numbers of participants in each.\u201d<\/p>\n

The general recommendation is to use exercise in conjunction with<\/a> other first-line treatments for depression. <\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that a combination of therapy, medication, and other methods, such as meditation and exercise, would lead to a more wholesome treatment plan,\u201d Boduryan-Turner told Healthline. <\/p>\n

\u201cMost often, people feel the pressure to manage their depression with a single method, such as \u2018just need medication\u2019 or \u2018just need to go to therapy.\u2019 However, incorporating multiple modalities increases our chances of effectively overcoming our struggles,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Depression affects everyone differently, and committing to regular exercise may be more difficult for some people than others.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt depends entirely on where someone is in their depression. For mild to moderate presentations \u2014 especially when someone still has some motivational fuel in the tank \u2014 exercise can absolutely be a primary intervention,\u201d Mitchell said. <\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, depression is essentially a disorder of initiative. Telling someone in a deep depressive episode<\/a> to exercise is like handing someone with two broken arms a life raft and telling them to swim,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mitchell added that for people with moderate to severe depression, he would typically recommend therapy first to help build positive momentum so that exercise feels possible. <\/p>\n

He noted that a person can then layer in movement as they stabilize their moods. It\u2019s about sequencing interventions to meet the person where they are, not where they wish to be, he said.<\/p>\n

Exercise can help manage symptoms of depression in physiological and psychological ways. Physical activity releases endorphins<\/a>, neurotransmitters associated with positive moods and feelings of well-being. <\/p>\n

\u201cI recommend that individuals planning to incorporate exercise into their mental health treatment focus on quality over quantity, so that it is not so much about how long they have exercised as about engaging in some form of exercise consistently,\u201d Boduryan-Turner said.<\/p>\n

She added that she would encourage people to \u201cengage in an exercise that aligns with the interests you used to have.\u201d <\/p>\n

Mitchell agreed. \u201cThe type of exercise matters less than we think. Walking, dancing<\/a>, gardening, gentle yoga<\/a> \u2014 they all send the same signal to a stuck nervous system: \u2018we\u2019re not trapped, we can still move through the world,’\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Share on PinterestA recent review shows that exercise may be nearly as effective as therapy for depression. Image…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":247799,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[103,397,396,61,60],"class_list":{"0":"post-247798","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-health-care","10":"tag-healthcare","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247798","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=247798"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247798\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/247799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=247798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=247798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=247798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}