For people struggling with depression, the findings show you don’t have to run marathons or otherwise train strenuously to benefit.
By Gretchen Reynolds
Exercise as a treatment for severe depression is at least as effective as standard drugs or psychotherapy and by some measures better, according to the largest study to date of exercise as “medicine” for depression.
The study pooled data from 41 studies involving 2,265 people with depression and showed that almost any type of exercise substantially reduces depression symptoms, although some forms of exercise seemed more beneficial than others.
“We found large, significant results,” said Andreas Heissel, an exercise scientist at the University of Potsdam in Germany, who led the study.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2023/03/15/exercise-depression-benefits/