Quick answers about exercise and mental health
Does exercise improve mental health?
Yes. Research consistently shows that regular physical activity can reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress while improving overall mood and wellbeing.
How does exercise help with anxiety and stress?
Exercise can regulate stress hormones, improve sleep, and increase the release of mood-supporting chemicals in the brain such as endorphins and serotonin.
How much exercise helps mental health?
Studies suggest even moderate exercise — such as walking, cycling, or swimming — for around 30 minutes several times per week can have measurable mental health benefits.
Is exercise a replacement for therapy?
Exercise can support mental wellbeing and there is evidence for mild depressive symptoms in particular that it can be enough on its own. But for many people it works best alongside psychological therapy, particularly when difficulties such as anxiety, burnout, or depression are persistent.
The connection between physical activity and mental health
Exercise is often discussed in relation to physical health, but research increasingly shows that it also plays an important role in psychological wellbeing.
Regular physical activity has been linked with lower rates of depression and anxiety, improved mood, better stress regulation, and increased cognitive functioning. These effects appear to occur through a combination of biological, psychological, and social mechanisms.
For many people living in busy areas like Darlinghurst and inner Sydney, daily life can involve long periods of sitting, screen time, and mental demands. Incorporating movement into routine can be an important way of supporting emotional balance.
How exercise affects the brain
Exercise influences several systems that are closely connected to mental health.
Physical activity stimulates the release of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins. These chemicals are involved in mood regulation, motivation, and feelings of wellbeing. Exercise has also been shown to increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that supports brain plasticity and cognitive functioning.
Together, these changes can help explain why people often report feeling calmer, clearer, or more energised after physical activity.
So what forms of exercise is best?
A wide range of physical activities have been studied in relation to mental health. While no single form of exercise is best for everyone, research suggests several types consistently show benefits for mood and psychological wellbeing.
Aerobic exercise
Aerobic exercise such as walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming has one of the strongest research bases for improving symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Regular aerobic activity can help regulate stress hormones, improve sleep, and support overall emotional resilience. Even moderate forms of aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, have been associated with improvements in mood and reductions in anxiety symptoms.
Strength training
Resistance training, including weightlifting or bodyweight exercises, has also been shown to support mental health.
Studies suggest strength training may help reduce symptoms of depression and improve self-esteem, confidence, and perceived physical capability. These benefits may occur through both physiological changes and psychological factors such as increased sense of mastery.
Mind–body exercise
Mind–body forms of movement such as yoga, tai chi, and qigong have been linked with reductions in stress and improvements in emotional wellbeing.
These activities combine movement with breathing and mindfulness elements, which may help regulate the nervous system and promote relaxation.
Dance and expressive movement
Dance is another form of physical activity that has shown promising benefits for mental health. Research suggests that dance can improve mood, reduce stress, and enhance social connection.
Unlike some other forms of exercise, dance combines physical movement, music, creativity, and often social interaction, which may contribute to its psychological benefits. Studies have found dance-based interventions can help improve symptoms of depression and support emotional wellbeing across different age groups.
For many people, dance may also feel more engaging or enjoyable than traditional exercise, which can make it easier to maintain over time.
Outdoor and nature-based exercise
Exercise performed outdoors — for example walking in parks or coastal areas — may provide additional mental health benefits.
Exposure to natural environments has been associated with improved mood, reduced stress, and enhanced cognitive functioning.
Choosing a sustainable form of movement
While research supports many different forms of exercise, one of the most important factors is consistency. Activities that people enjoy and can maintain regularly tend to produce the greatest psychological benefits. For some people this may be structured workouts, while for others it may involve walking, cycling, team sports, yoga classes, or dance.
The real takeaway is what you do does not particularly matter as long as you do it!
Exercise and anxiety
Exercise can be particularly helpful for people experiencing anxiety.
Physical activity activates the body’s stress response temporarily, which may help people become more comfortable with physical sensations associated with anxiety, such as increased heart rate or breathing. Research also suggests that regular exercise can reduce overall levels of anxiety and improve resilience to stress.
For people who struggle with persistent worry or overthinking, combining physical activity with psychological therapy — such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) — can be especially effective.
Exercise and depression
Depression often involves low energy, reduced motivation, and withdrawal from activities that previously felt rewarding. Exercise can help address these patterns by increasing behavioural activation — the process of gradually reintroducing meaningful activity and engagement with the environment.
Studies have shown that structured exercise programs can produce improvements in mild depressive symptoms comparable to some therapeutic and pharmacological approaches. However, starting exercise can be difficult when motivation is low. In these situations, therapy can help people build small, manageable steps toward re-engaging with activity. Further, the research also says that for people with moderate levels of symptoms or above that engaging in therapy alongside developing a consistent exercise routine provides even better results.
Exercise is helpful — but it is not the whole picture
Although exercise can support mental wellbeing, it is not always sufficient on its own when someone is experiencing significant or persistent mental health difficulties. Anxiety, burnout, depression, trauma, and long-standing emotional patterns often involve multiple psychological factors. Evidence-based psychological therapies can help people understand these patterns and develop tools for managing them more effectively.
At Darlinghurst Psychologists, therapists often integrate lifestyle factors such as sleep, exercise, and stress management alongside structured therapies. If you’re curious about the therapies we practice please check out our Treatments Page .
A comprehensive assessment can help determine which approaches are likely to be most helpful.
Finding a balanced approach to wellbeing
Mental health is rarely supported by one strategy alone. For many people, wellbeing improves through a combination of approaches, including:
- regular movement or physical activity
- supportive relationships
- adequate sleep
- meaningful work and interests
- psychological support when needed
Exercise can be a valuable part of this picture, but it tends to work best when combined with other evidence-based strategies.
When to consider speaking with a psychologist
If anxiety, low mood, or stress have been affecting daily life for several weeks or months, it may be helpful to speak with a psychologist. If you’re curious about whether exercise would be enough that’s okay to! You can always try to pick a type of exercise you think would be most enjoyable for you, aim for 3 sessions a week of over 30mins (at a moderate intensity) and re-assess after four weeks or so – if that’s pulled you out of whatever symptoms you may have been experiencing that is amazing!
But if not, a psychologist can help you in ways to work alongside this and more directly treat the mental health picture. Therapy can help identify the factors contributing to emotional difficulties and develop practical strategies for improving wellbeing.
If you are considering support, you can learn more about the psychologists at Darlinghurst Psychologists or get in touch through the contact page to arrange an appointment.
References
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