Meditation and Exercise — The Ultimate Chill

My Own Motivations

My primary motivation for exercise is the serene state of mind it brings with it. And that’s also why I meditate. Put the two together, and anxiety and depression don’t stand a chance. At least so says this Rutgers study published in the journal Translational Psychology, which found that a combination of aerobic exercise and meditation reduced symptoms of depression by 40 percent.

The Data

The study subjects practiced 30 minutes of meditation combined with 30 minutes of exercise, just twice a week for two months. This brief and modest amount of the two produced a “meaningful improvement in both clinically depressed and non-depressed students.” So while both meditation and exercise can ease symptoms of depression on their own, the improvements multiplied when done together. The subjects also showed better synchronization of brain activity and ability to focus. Feelings of overwhelm, anxiety and rumination over past events — major contributors to depression — showed significant decline.

How It Seems to Work

While both seem to have a profound effect on the brain, each apparently does its magic in a different way. Exercise improves with the process of neurogenesis, building new brain cells in the hippocampus, where memory, learning and emotions are active. A common finding of a number of studies has been an on average smaller hippocampus area in subjects suffering depression. Finally, exercise increases the flow of oxygen and blood, which delivers more happiness-boosting biochemicals.

Meditation works a bit differently, effecting your parasympathetic nervous system. This area is responsible for bringing about a feeling of calm by slowing down your central nervous system. Your prefrontal cortex is responsible for emotions, thought analysis, and judgment. Using brain imaging, meditators have shown to have better signaling in the prefrontal cortex and a greater ability to focus and concentrate.

Guessing As To Why It Works

The human body is beyond complex. While we can measure outcomes, understanding why and how something works is much more difficult. One speculation is that exercise creates new brain cells while meditation extends their life and level of function. What we do know is that subjects in this study were able to improve their ability to remain present, calm and focused, which is well known to combat depression and anxiety.

While a mindful approach to life is for many an entirely different way of thinking, exercise is pretty universally understood as essential to improving your mood. Now we have hard evidence that shows the two combined are more than the sum of their parts.

This piece was written for the Smashby Podcast ©2020.