Lifting Weights: A Cure To Depression?
What Is Depression? | What Is Anxiety? | The Study | The Findings | Takeaway
Lifting weights comes with a plethora of benefits, one is the positive impact on mental health. But how does the iron fair against depression?
Talk of mental health has opened up, and the awareness of its importance is increasingly more well-known. Even so, sufferers may find difficulty in seeking help and finding effective treatments.
At the same time, the effect of exercise on mental health has escalated in talks within the fitness community. People, myself included, vouch that exercise has helped ease their minds and improve their focus.
Today, we’ll look at a study that investigates the mental-healing properties of exercise on sufferers of depression and anxiety, and what the findings mean for you.
What Is Depression?
Depression is a common mood disorder. It negatively impacts the mental space and daily lives of those affected. Anyone can become depressed, regardless of age, gender, or race.
There are different types of depression with varying symptoms, but the common symptoms may include the following:
Feeling sad or hopeless
Irritable or frustrated
Worthlessness
Loss of interest
Low energy and fatigue
Difficulty sleeping and/or waking
Dark thoughts
Experiencing these symptoms every once in a while is normal. However, having these symptoms consistently may indicate depression.
What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety is a general feeling of worry or uneasiness. Some occasional anxiety is normal, like the worry a student may feel during exam season. Similar to depression, however, a consistent feeling of worry that doesn’t fade may signal an anxiety disorder.
There are also many types of anxiety disorders, one being GAD or general anxiety disorder. Here are some of the symptoms:
Feeling restless or wound up
Fatigued
Lack of focus
Irritable
Headaches
Sleep problems
The symptoms of depression and anxiety do crossover and it’s common to experience both at the same time.
The Study
The go-to treatments for depression are medication and psychotherapy, which have negative side effects and are costly. A viable alternative is exercise.
There are positive findings of aerobic exercise in improving depression, but the effects of resistance training haven’t been investigated sufficiently.
In this study, researchers explored the antidepressant effects of resistance training on 55 young adults (roughly 26 years old) who have either generalised anxiety disorder or major depressive disorder.
Participants of the study were new to resistance training and had one-on-one training sessions twice a week for 8 weeks. They submitted a questionnaire every 4 weeks that measured their level of depressive symptoms.
The workouts lasted just 25 minutes and the exercises used in the study were compound lifts in the 8 to 12-rep range. Progressive overload was incorporated too.
The Findings
Fast Improvements
In the first week alone, levels of depression decreased, with a further reduction between weeks 4 and 8.
Suggesting that simply making a start with resistance training can rapidly improve mental health, with consistent training improving depressive symptoms even further.
Full Body Training Is Best
This study used a full-body training program that was “ecologically valid and guideline-based”. Researchers found this style of training to be more effective at reducing depression in comparison to previous research that only studied aerobic exercise. A similar conclusion can be drawn when comparing this study to a study that only incorporated lower-body resistance training.
Note that increasing strength didn’t affect the rate at which depression was reduced. However, participants were new to resistance training, so simply following a well-structured routine may have been enough of a stimulus.
Choose Weights Over Drugs
The study found that for mild to moderate depression, resistance training works better than some anti-depression medication. Highlighting the positive and powerful effect of resistance training on mental health.
Takeaway
If you’re currently inactive and feel depressed, any form of exercise may have a positive impact on your mental health
Lifting weights may be best in decreasing depression fast
Even short resistance training sessions (around half an hour) are enough to improve mental well-being
Follow a well-structured training plan and stay consistent for the best results in battling depression - read Cutting Concepts to ensure that you build and follow a training routine that is optimal for you, whilst also learning the groundwork of fitness for fat loss
Disclaimer: This is not medical advice.You May Also Like:
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016517812300272X
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders
