The Effects of EXERCISE vs Depression My Expieriences and Beyond

We all want to be happy.

But is there anything you can actually do to feel happier more often? Or at the very least… can you limit the likelihood that you’ll feel sad and depressed?

There's lots of research that is starting to reveal the incredible connection between our physical actions and our mental health. In fact, it’s very possible that what you do can have a significant impact on how you feel, and I'm a perfect example of that!

Some of you know my story, some of you don't. But to keep it short, I used to struggle with severe bouts of depression after the loss of my dad and the events that transpired in my life shortly there afterwards. I was on prescription depression medication for quite a while. I could go a whole lot farther into detail about my experiences with "happy pills" but I'll leave that for another time.

One of the biggest things that came into my life to help me change the state of mental health I was in surrendering my life to Christ! Through the spiritual healing I went through, I was able to get off of the medication. But even after I began a strong relationship with God I still dealt with seasonal depression for several years following.

What's seasonal depression?

Well the best way for me to explain it is that it comes with the weather or a certain time of year, like the beginning of Fall about the same time of year my dad was killed. I'm not just talking about the rainy day blues here, but severe depression where you just barely function yet fake a smile so nobody sees through it. I really dealt harshly with this in my adolescent years, and I'm not even sure my family was aware of it at all.

During these times, you don't really have a grasp of what's going on, what needs to be done, what you need to do, and frankly, you don't care. You just feel like crap all the time and you'd almost rather be dead.

Now I'm sharing this in complete and total transparency here... I will admit that I've held a loaded gun to my head in my early years more than once and contemplated pulling the trigger. There really is nothing good about depression and it is something that should be dealt with extreme caution and thoughtful care. Counseling is a great thing to help. I would suggest finding a good Christian counselor if you're currently dealing with severe depression. Get to the root of it and not just cover it up with medication. (MY OPINION)

But what else can YOU do? Because essentially, you choose the way you deal, feel, and heal things in your life.

After I was aware of what was going on through help of seeing a counselor myself, I decided to really pay attention and "prepare" for that time of year to come..."cut it off at the pass" so to speak. It didn't work! however, it wasn't anywhere as severe as it was in the past and it seemed to run it's course a lot quicker too! PROGRESS!

Now that was a little over three years ago. I haven't had an episode of depression since! So, I started researching why! Have I just gotten over it? what has changed about me in that time? Does time really heal wounds? what is it?

Well a little over three years ago was when I started out on my health and fitness journey! That last year I had a depression spell I was working out at the Y but my diet hadn't changed all that much. Almost year later I joined as a Beachbody Coach and was drinking Shakeology and exercising every day, and have every day since! MY LIFE HAS CHANGED in a huge way! not only has my physical health been transformed, but my mental wellbeing has never been stronger! I know that my nutrition and the natural occurring Adaptogens in Shakeology played a big part in that but what about the science between just exercise and depression?

HERE'S WHAT I FOUND!

James Blumenthal is a neuroscientist at Duke University who specializes in depression. In one of his most famous experiments, published in the Journal of Bio behavioral Medicine, Blumenthal gathered 156 adults who had mild or moderate cases of depression.

The patients were split into three groups.

Group 1 was treated with sertraline, an antidepressant drug. You probably know sertraline by it’s trade names Zoloft and Lustral. In 2011, over 37 million sertraline prescriptions were written to treat a wide range of issues, including major depressive disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety.

Group 2 used a combination of exercise and medication. They were prescribed the same dosage of sertraline as Group 1. Additionally, Group 2 exercised three times each week for 45 minutes. They followed the same exercise program that is described for Group 3 below.

Group 3 used an exercise only treatment. Three times per week, they performed 45 minutes of exercise. This included 10 minutes of warm up, 30 minutes of walking or jogging at a pace that would maintain a heart rate that was 80% to 90% of their maximum, and then 5 minutes of cool down.

Here’s what happened…

Each patient received treatment for 16 weeks (4 months) under the supervision of the researchers and professional staff. At the end of the treatment period, the researchers were surprised to find that all three treatments delivered essentially equal results.

Treating depression with exercise was just as effective as medication, and vice versa. Furthermore, combining the two treatments yielded the same success rate as doing either one individually.

But then the researchers decided to track the long–term progress of each patient and this is where the study gets really interesting…

Exercise and Depression: The Long–Term Impact

After 16 weeks of treatment, there were 83 patients (spread evenly across all three groups) that were declared in remission and free from depression.

The researchers decided to let these patients spend the next six months without receiving any treatment from professionals. The patients were welcome to continue their treatment on their own or to try something new entirely.

When the researchers followed up with the patients six months later, here’s what they found…

- In the medication only group, 38% of patients relapsed into depression.

- In the exercise and medication group, 31% of patients relapsed into depression.

- In the exercise only group, only 8% of patients relapsed into depression.

Exercise and Depression - What made the difference?

Why Did Exercise Outperformed Medication?

Dr. Blumenthal and his colleagues described the differences between exercise and medication like this…

One of the positive psychological benefits of systematic exercise is the development of a sense of personal mastery and positive self–regard, which we believe is likely to play some role in the depression–reducing effects of exercise.

In other words, exercise helps confirm your real identity to yourself. It changes the type of person that you believe that you are and proves that you can become better. (I’ve previously said that the self–confidence that comes with exercise is one of the biggest benefits of starting a program.)

This philosophy directly aligns with our community’s focus on identity-based habits. It doesn’t matter if you’re battling depression, working to lose weight, or trying to create work that really matters. Your identity — the type of person that you believe that you are and who and what your identity is in — is what dictates how far you’ll go in any endeavor.

When it comes to beating depression over the long–term, this is what makes exercise more powerful than medication. It’s not that medication doesn’t work — it, (in my expierience kind of) does. But exercise does something that medication doesn’t. It proves a new identity to yourself. Each time you finish a workout, you reap the benefits of an increased sense of self–confidence and worth. The cumulative impact of these “small wins” is enormous!

In the words of the researchers, patients who only used medication had the following internal thoughts…

Instead of incorporating the belief “I was dedicated and worked hard with the exercise program; it wasn’t easy, but I beat this depression,” patients might incorporate the belief that “I took an antidepressant and got better.”

It seems small, but this subtle shift in empowerment and self–confidence is huge. It’s your identity that carries you to success. WHO YOU BELIEVE YOU ARE!

If you believe that you’re the type of person who doesn’t miss workouts, then you’re going to get in great shape.

If you believe that you’re the type of person who overcomes uncertainty, then you’ll succeed when you face a challenge.

If you believe that you’re the type of person who puts others first, then you’ll live a life of service.

But no matter what, it’s your identity and beliefs that carries you to long–term success. And this is where medication falls short. It treats your symptoms, but doesn’t rebuild your identity and it never will. Only you and God working together can do that. TAKE ACTION TODAY!

Love you all!

Coach Andy-

#depression #exercise #overcoming