Exercise typically has a positive impact on mental health outcomes. However, new research suggests that engaging in physical activity can have surprising side effects. It shows that the tendency to recall content can be exacerbated by exercise.
This research cognitive behavioral therapy.
“It’s well-known that exercise is good for mental health, and is as effective as antidepressants and psychotherapy in reducing symptoms of depression,” said the study’s author, Pro Persona Mental Health. Michele Schmitter, PhD student at Care and Radboud University Nijmegen.
“However, we do not yet know how exercise can mitigate depression. This information is important for improving patient characteristics and treatment match, and ultimately improving treatment response.” According to cognitive theories (e.g. Beck, 1960), maladaptive cognitive processes such as negatively biased memory and rumination are important mechanisms in the development and maintenance of depression.
“Therefore, modifying these processes is an important goal of depression treatment,” explained Schmitter. “Since exercise improves brain health in areas related to higher cognition and memory, altered depressive cognition may serve as a previously untested mechanism for exercise’s antidepressant effects. Therefore, in our study, we investigated in the lab whether exercise actually influences negative memory biases and rumination.”
For their study, Schmitter and her colleagues used Radboud University’s research participant system to recruit a sample of 100 people who reported exercising no more than once a week. The average age of participants was approximately 25 years old, and just over half (58%) were students.
Participants first completed a baseline assessment that included measurements of rumination, depressive symptoms, and general activity level.
To induce negative mood, participants were instructed to watch a segment of the drama film “Sophie’s Choice.” After viewing the segment, participants were randomly assigned to her 24 minutes of exercise or rest. Athletic subjects performed 2 minutes of slow cycling, 20 minutes of moderate-intensity cycling, and 2 minutes of cool-down.
Participants then completed another set of assessments, including measures of rumination, negative memory bias, excessive general memory, and positive and negative impact.
Additionally, positive and negative moods were assessed eight times across the study. As expected, participants reported having more negative moods and less positive moods after watching the movie segment. However, the researchers found no difference between the two conditions throughout the study.
In other words, exercise did not appear to improve (or worsen) a person’s general mood, ability to retrieve specific autobiographical memories, or rumination self-focus (e.g., “Now I think about how happy or sad I am.”).
However, there were some differences between the two groups.
Researchers found that people in exercise reported more positive effects on emotions such as excitement, alertness, and enthusiasm compared to those in rest. However, among those with higher levels of rumination, those who exercised had higher negative memory bias measures than those who rested.
“Our study showed that a single session of exercise is not sufficient to moderate memory bias and rumination, and may even exacerbate these depressive cognitive processes in some individuals.
The relationship between exercise and positive influences was expected, but the relationship between exercise and negative memory biases was not.
“It was surprising that exercise increased the bias towards negative memories in people who ruminated more, even though it also increased positive emotions. It’s possible that those who are more susceptible may have experienced the exercise session in the lab as stressful,” Schmitter explained.
However, the findings have an important caveat.
“Exercise is not self-initiated and can be very different from regular exercise, such as running in nature or listening to great music while running on a treadmill at the gym,” says Schmitter. He told PsyPost. Future studies investigating social cognition are needed.”
the study, “The Solution: Can strenuous exercise reduce memory bias, rumination, and negative moods?was written by Michelle Schmitter, Marie Anne Vanderhasselt, Jan Spiker, Jasper A.J. Smits, and Gianna N. Vleisen.
