Physical Activity and Anxiety

Physical activity is shown to positively impact those with mental disorders like anxiety. It has been proven that physical activity relieves symptoms and reduces the risk of anxiety. Physical activity also is shown to reduce Anxiety symptom scores (measured by STAI and POMS) in the same ways that meditation and relaxation do. In a study comparing aerobic activity to strength and flexibility training, 79 anxiety diagnosed hospitalized patients were randomly assigned to either walking/jogging or strength/flexibility for eight weeks. After these 8 weeks, both groups recorded reduction in anxiety. (Paluska and Schwenk, 2012).Physical activity releases endorphins, relieving tension and stress and boosting metal energy (Robinson, 2019).