Exercise should be treated as an important activity to complete our day and cannot be neglected for any reason.

I had brain surgery several years ago, which caused depress on me . When ever I felt bad (stressed) . I did some physical activity at a good hard pace Ex. Cycling , Jogging , Ice hockey, ETC. That would mentally relax my mind, only because you don't have time to think negitively while doing these thing, By the time your finish you too tired to care any more . I had a drug prescription in case I couldn't take the stress , I never had to take in because this work. But I enjoy physical activity very much and it clears my head. If you don't like doing physical activity I can see it not working you

Depression hits you out of the blue, feeling down usually has a cause, like lack of sunshine, bad day at work and so on.
Exercise is addictive, I think it is the same as any other form of addiction, some become addicted while others don't. I know when I miss a few days of exercise my body craves it.
Exercise is beneficial to everyone, but it will not cure nor will it alleviate the symptoms of depression, but will cure "yucky" moods.
Lets don't misuse the term Depression.
Just how I see it.

depends too on the source of what is causing depression and for how long. Those who have had brain injuries and not received help will continue to suffer depression until help is given.

I am a therapist who works with clients with mood disorders. I have depression myself. I can assure you that exercise can frequently reduce depression. However it must be a combination of cardio then muscle exercises and you must do it for 45-50 minutes a day. Research has shown that after about 30 minutes of strenuous exercising (you are drenched with sweat) that the body begins to manufacture its own serotonin and dopamine. Both are critical to depression and because they are made by you, the body won\t reject them like it might if you take an anti-depressant which affects serotonin and/or dopamine. In another 5-10 minutes your body releases brain driven neurotrophic factor which is like Miracle Gro for the brain. It stimulates new neuronal growth and increases branches on existing neurons. More neurons and branches means more serotonin and dopamine. This is a good way to reduce the "down" of depression. If you are significantly depressed this may not help until you are on a successful medication for a while. Hope this is helpful in explaining the value of exercise on depression. B y the way, many long distance runners suffer with anxiety. Also, I have found that P90x is one of the better programs around for this because of its dual cardio and muscle approach. And no, I am not a commissioned sales person for this exercise program!

Who commissioned this study? Was it funded by big pharma companies so they can sell more drugs to depressed people? As someone who has suffered from depression, I have to strongly disagree with the findings. Exercise has always been a help for my depression and while it may not cure depression it is definitely a big part of any type of treatment as far as I am concerned!

Either this article is missing information or it seems another bunch of money wasted on a half done study. Let's start studying how much time and money is wasted on studies that are flawed or useless.

Most people do not know the huge difference between a "blue day" and "clinical depression".

I agree with the comment at 4:27. Mood and depression are not the same thing. Although exercise will perhaps help in both situations, the immediate effect on mood is not the case with depression. The feel good attitude is not immediate with depression after exercising.

Terrible reporting. Were the participants in the experimental group any more active as a result of being reminded? If not, the conclusion would be that telling depressed people they should be more active is futile . . . which we already knew.

Someone has too much time on their hands. When performing some research, especially in this area, spend that money and available information going forward, and avoid foolish outcomes like this latest research find.

I find the one word used throughout this article interesting - "mood". Yes, exercise does help me to be in a better "mood"...the question is are "mood" and "depression" the same thing? I have a few family members who suffer with depression - although it appears they are in a "sad mood", they will admit that they have no reason to feel depressed - everythign in their life is going good...it just seems to hit them. Everyone gets in a bad, or sad, mood in their life - maybe on a daily or weekly basis - but that's not the same as "depression". If you're in a bad mood - got for a run or workout and yes, you will feel better. A person with depression doesn't necessarily "feel" better after a workout - because depression isn't a "feeling" or a "mood". I find it a bit bewildering that these so called "professionals" are using these two words interchangeably as if they are the same thing. I'm not a "professional", but from my family member's experience, I can pretty much guarantee they are not the same thing.

exercise, huh? who knew? well pretty much everybody but tell that to someone who is physically able to exercise!

I always feel better after 2.5 walk regularly. Before starting to walk, I did feel down or depressed or even wanting to cry. This am I wanted to bawl my eyes out but forced myself to go for walk and put smile on my face...greeting some people in my neighbourhood area. It does make you feel good about yourself. Because of bad weather, I didn't go for walking for days and yes to feel "yucky".... I truly believe that walking does great wonder for any people who feel down or depressed.

I think this study does more damage than good.

Why would we ever want to discourage anyone, and especially those who are depressed, from engaging in physical activity when we know that it is the lack of physical activity which often contributes to depression in the first place?

This study is extremely short-sighted and does not truly test the impact that physical activity has on the human mind.

Hi JDay,

Very true. I too find I feel lousy if I stop exercising. In my experience, exercise provides a lot of mental health benefits.
-Melissa Greer, Content Producer

I exercise on a daily basis and I know at least the inverse to be true; if I stop exercising I get more lethargic, lose muscle, gain weight, people treat you differently and I fall into depression.

I think an obese person who takes up exercise for the first time may have a negative experience physically because the body isn't used to it and this may negatively affect self-esteem for the first year even.