Word Count: 413
Average Read Time: 1 minute 30 seconds
Disclaimer: This post is not intended to diagnose or treat any form of illness.
Quarantine sucks. For most people, quarantine means staying at home all day, every day. That sounds nice for a day or two, but eventually, this can lead to restlessness and anxiety. I’ve experienced this as well, to an extent. Working from home, I’m used to being home most of the time. I’m not used to being home all of the time.
Resistance Training
Luckily for you and for me, intense exercise is a medicine that can help cure cabin fever. In fact, there was a 2005 study that looked at seniors with major or minor depression. [1] These individuals were randomly assigned to one of three groups:
A high-intensity weight lifting group (80% maximum load)
A low-intensity weight lifting group (20% maximum load)
A general practice group consisting of visits to their doctor, antidepressant medication when deemed necessary, and counseling when deemed necessary
Interestingly, both exercise groups significantly outperformed the general practice group, showing significant improvements in depression symptoms as rated by themselves (using the Geriatric Depression Scale) and their therapists (using the Hamilton Rating Scale of Depression).
The high-intensity group showed more than double the improvement of the general practice group (58% change vs 23% change). The low-intensity group showed moderately greater improvement over the general practice group.
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Secondary Outcomes
Quality of Life
All groups showed improvements in Physical Function, Physical Health, Vitality, Social Function, Emotional Health, and Mental Health. Like before, the greatest improvements were found in the high-intensity group (32.5%), followed by the low-intensity group (31.8%). The general practice group, again, showed the least improvement (29.2%).
Sleep Quality
Sleep quality improved in all groups as well. Yet again, the greatest improvements were found in the high-intensity group (24%), followed by the low-intensity group (22%). The general practice group, again, showed the least improvement (19%).
The results of the study suggest that there is a dose-response relationship of weight lifting for depression, meaning that there is typically little or no effect at very low dosages and an undesired effect at high dosages with the maximum increase in effect somewhere between the extremes.
Takeaway
This is a difficult time for us all, but particularly for those who have preexisting depressive symptoms. The studies available at this time suggest that weight training can and should be used as a stand-alone treatment or in conjunction with existing treatment. [1][2] Intense weight training can also be used as the first line of defense for those of us who are starting to feel a bit anxious from being cooped up over the last month.
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