A new study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders demonstrates that strength training, including moderate- and low-intensity exercise, significantly reduces depressive symptoms in young women with elevated anxiety levels. These findings open up new possibilities for treatment without medication, particularly given that women are more likely than men to experience anxiety and depressive disorders, which often occur together.
Strength training as an alternative to conventional treatment
Generalised anxiety disorder is characterised by intense, persistent worry that interferes with everyday life. Some people experience similar symptoms but do not meet the criteria for a formal diagnosis, a condition known as subclinical or analogue anxiety. Women are twice as likely as men to experience anxiety and depression, and these conditions often occur together. Although medication and talking therapy are standard treatments, they may be inaccessible because of high costs or cause unwanted side effects.
Physical exercise is considered a potential alternative treatment. Strength training, which involves using weights or resistance to build muscle mass, shows particular promise. A 2018 meta-analysis found that strength training reliably reduces depressive symptoms across different population groups. An earlier study conducted in 2023 found that an eight-week strength training programme reduced depressive symptoms in young people compared with a waiting-list control group.
However, comparing a training programme with a waiting-list group leaves a gap in our understanding. It is difficult to determine whether the effect results from physical exertion or simply from the benefits of leaving the house, interacting with a trainer and expecting to feel better. To separate the physical benefits from the psychological effects of receiving attention, the researchers decided to compare standard strength training with very low-intensity training.
Study design and findings
The current study was designed to test whether the actual intensity of strength training changes the extent of mental health improvements. “We extended our previous study by comparing the same strength training intervention with a low-intensity simulation of strength training as an attention control,” explained lead author Daragh O’Sullivan of the University of Limerick, Ireland.
The study involved 55 young women with an average age of 22 who met the criteria for subclinical generalised anxiety disorder and did not regularly engage in strength training. Participants were randomly assigned to two groups for an eight-week programme involving individual sessions with a trainer twice a week. One group followed a moderate-to-high-intensity programme, lifting 70-80% of their maximum weight, while the other followed a low-intensity programme, lifting 20% of their maximum weight and performing the same exercises.
The results showed that both groups experienced a significant reduction in depressive symptoms. Symptom scores fell by an average of 54% in the higher-intensity group and 43% in the low-intensity group. The difference in mental health improvements between the groups was not statistically significant, indicating that low-intensity training also produces a strong antidepressant effect in this population.
Changes in physical strength differed: the high-intensity group increased their strength by 41%, while the low-intensity group increased theirs by 21%. The psychological benefits persisted in both groups a month after the programme ended. The strong effect in the low-intensity group was somewhat unexpected for the researchers, but probably reflects a substantial change in physical activity levels compared with doing no training at all.
Limitations and future directions
The study’s findings differ somewhat from those of a 2024 meta-analysis, which found that higher exercise intensity was associated with greater reductions in depression, although that analysis focused on clinical depression rather than subclinical anxiety in young women. However, the new findings are consistent with a 2026 study, which also found that strength training reduced depressive symptoms in older women regardless of intensity.
The researchers note that the low-intensity group may have experienced a moderate physical training effect rather than serving as a purely psychological control. Since this group also achieved some gains in physical strength, it is difficult to separate fully the psychological benefits of participation from the physical benefits of movement itself. In addition, the study relied on self-reports, which may be influenced by participants’ expectations. The sample was limited to young women with a particular anxiety profile, so the findings may not generalise to men, older people or people with clinical disorders.
The researchers propose further research on a larger scale in clinical settings to compare strength training directly with standard treatments such as talking therapy or medication. “Both higher- and lower-intensity strength training can lead to significant reductions in depressive symptoms in young women with anxiety,” O’Sullivan concluded. “Young women can benefit even from low-intensity strength training that requires less physical effort, but we recommend gradually increasing the intensity to gain additional health benefits. For those who do not engage in strength training, any activity is better than none, including for mental health.”
Source: PsyPost – Psychology News
