high intensity exercise helps anxiety

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WORK IT, HARD Health professionals

generally agree that exercise improves one's

mental state. Now, research from the

University of Missouri-Columbia suggests

that pushing oneself hard may be especially

beneficial for daily anxiety.

In a study to be published in a future issue of

Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 24

women participated in three trials in which

they either did not exercise or exercised at

moderate or high intensity for about a

half-hour. Their anxiety level was measured

before and several times after each session.

High-intensity exercise produced the greater reduction

in anxiety, and the effect became more

pronounced over time. The euphoria experienced during

recovery from intense exercise may

explain the benefit, said , lead author and

professor of exercise and sport psychology at

Missouri-Columbia. Despite its limitations in scale

and design, the study may have implications for

management of anxiety disorders and cardiovascular

disease.