Resistance exercise linked to reduced depression symptoms

Resistance training was associated with a reduction in depression symptoms regardless of how often people exercised, a research review suggests.

Most prior research focused more on aerobic exercise like running rather than strength training

Thomson Reuters Posted: Jun 14, 2018 1:47 PM EDT | Last Updated: June 14, 2018

A range of exercises may be able to help ease depression and other mood disorders. (Jeff Gentner/Associated Press)

People who do resistance exercises like weight lifting and strength training may experience fewerdepression symptoms, a research review suggests.

The study team analyzed data from 33 clinical trials thatrandomly assigned a total of 947 adults to participate inresistance training programs and another 930 adults to beinactive.

Resistance workouts were associated with fewer depressionsymptoms regardless of whether participants had a physical ormental health problem, although the effect was most pronouncedin adults with mild to moderate depression, the study teamreports in JAMA Psychiatry.

"Previous reviews have shown that exercise training of alltypes improves depressive symptoms among otherwise healthyadults, adults with a variety of medical conditions, and adultswith major depressive disorder," said lead author Brett Gordon,a researcher at the University of Limerick in Ireland.

Most prior research, however, has focused more on aerobicexercise like running and cycling rather than on resistanceworkouts like weight lifting and strength training, Gordon saidby email.

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"In the trials included in our work, the effect ofresistance exercise training on depressive symptoms did notsignificantly vary based on the features of the resistanceexercise training, such as frequency or intensity," Gordonadded.

On average, the resistance training programs in the smalltrials included in the current study lasted about 16 weeks,although they ranged in duration from 6 to 52 weeks.

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Most often, the programs included three weekly exercisesessions, although some had only two and others had as many asseven sessions per week. Many of the resistance trainingprograms included supervised workouts alone or in combinationwith some unsupervised sessions.

In the subset of smaller trials that tracked whether peoplecompleted exercise programs as directed, the adherence rate was78 per cent. Some other trials reported only attendance, and thisranged from 88 per cent to 94 per cent.

We should not strive to make it a contest between aerobicexercise and resistance training. Both areessential to successful aging and independent living.-Dianna Purvis Jaffin

Resistance training was associated with a reduction indepression symptoms regardless of how often people exercised. Italso didn't appear to matter whether participants experiencedimprovements in strength or gains in muscle mass.

Even though the smaller trials in the analysis werecontrolled experiments designed to prove whether resistancetraining might be better than inactivity for easing depression,these trials still didn't determine if exercise might work bestalone, combined with medication or psychotherapy, or as analternative to those treatments. The study also didn't comparethe effects of resistance training to aerobic exercise or othertypes of workouts.

Moreover, several trials in the analysis did not trackwhether people who were prescribed antidepressants took thesemedications as directed, and this might independently influencethe magnitude of any changes in depression symptoms associatedwith exercise.

Even so, the results add to evidence that a range ofexercises may be able to help ease depression and other mooddisorders, said Dianna Purvis Jaffin of the Brain PerformanceInstitute at the Center for BrainHealth at the University ofTexas at Dallas.

"The underlying message is to stay active, in whatevermanner an individual will adhere to over the long-term," Jaffin,who wasn't involved in the study, said by email.

"We should not strive to make it a contest between aerobicexercise and resistance training," Jaffin added. "Both areessential to successful aging and independent living."

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Association of Efficacy of Resistance Exercise Training With Depressive Symptoms

Resistance exercise linked to reduced depression symptoms

Most prior research focused more on aerobic exercise like running rather than strength training

Stay active long term

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