Abstract
Exercise is effective for treating and preventing anxiety and depression, and for enhancing cognitive function. Recently, increased attention has been devoted to whether specific types (mode) or an optimal amount (dose-response) of exercise can be recommended or prescribed for mental health. This chapter summarizes the available evidence on mode and dose-response relationships of exercise on anxiety, depression, and cognitive function. Currently, it seems prudent to endorse international recommendations of 30–60 minutes of daily moderate-intensity aerobic exercise. Emerging evidence also supports the mental and cognitive-enhancing benefits of resistance exercise, suggesting that muscle strengthening activities should be incorporated in a well-rounded exercise routine. However, future research should recognize the role of individual differences in these exercise-related outcomes as well as the influence of other mind-and-body physical activities (yoga, tai chi, qigong) that are regularly practiced by many people around the world. We conclude the chapter by outlining some general evidence-based recommendations for prescribing exercise for mental health.
This chapter summarizes the available evidence on mode and dose-response relationships of exercise on anxiety, depression, and cognitive function. It outlines some general evidence-based recommendations for prescribing exercise for mental health. The chapter focuses on some of the more common complementary and alternative forms of exercise, including yoga, tai chi, and qigong. The efficacy of exercise for treating and preventing depression has been examined in a number of cross-sectional, prospective, and randomized controlled trial studies. An extensive body of research supports the anxiolytic benefits of aerobic exercise in both clinical and nonclinical populations. One of the earliest meta-analyses examining the effects of exercise on anxiety was conducted by Petruzzello and colleagues, who reviewed the exercise-anxiety literature for state, trait, and psychophysiological correlates of anxiety. The American College of Sports Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for maintaining physical and mental health include aerobic and resistance exercise sessions performed five or more days per week.