Resistance exercise for anxiety and depression: efficacy and plausible mechanisms

Matthew P Herring; Jacob D Meyer

doi:10.1016/j.molmed.2023.11.016

Resistance exercise for anxiety and depression: efficacy and plausible mechanisms

Trends Mol Med. 2024 Mar;30(3):204-206. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2023.11.016. Epub 2024 Jan 30.

Authors

Matthew P Herring¹, Jacob D Meyer²

Affiliations

¹ Physical Activity for Health Research Centre, Health Research Institute and Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland; Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA. Electronic address: matthew.herring@ul.ie.
² Department of Kinesiology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, USA; Neuroscience Program, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, USA.

PMID: 38296721
DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2023.11.016

Abstract

Anxiety and depressive symptoms and disorders are prevalent and poorly treated. The salutary benefits of resistance exercise training (RET), a potential alternative therapy, are well established, but mental health effects are understudied. This forum article summarizes the most rigorous evidence regarding efficacy of resistance exercise and provides a primer for putative psychobiological mechanisms.

Keywords: cerebral blood flow; insulin-like growth factor-1; mechanisms; mental health; psychobiology; resistance exercise training.

MeSH terms

Anxiety / therapy
Anxiety Disorders / therapy
Depression / therapy
Exercise / psychology
Exercise Therapy
Humans
Resistance Training*