The How of Happiness: Exercise vs Zoloft

from “The Optimizer” ezine

Today we're moving from Ancient Wisdom to Modern Science with the help of Sonja Lyubomirsky and her world-leading wellness lab + "HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY" recommended book The How of Happiness.

I'm still blown away every time I read the conclusion of the now-famous Exercise vs. Zoloft study. We've talked about how exercise is like taking a little bit of Ritalin and a little bit of Prozac, but somehow we've gotten this far into our series without talking about the fact that exercise is as effective as Zoloft in reducing depression.

Get this: in The How of Happiness, Sonja Lyubomirksy walks us through the experiment.

Bring clinically depressed individuals into a lab. Split them into 3 groups. The 1st group is assigned to 4 months of aerobic exercise, the 2nd group gets an antidepressant medication (in this case Zoloft), and the 3rd group gets both.
The exercise group does 3 sessions of 45 minutes of exercise per week of cycling or walking/jogging at a moderate to high intensity. Fast-forward 4 months.

As Sonja says: "Remarkably, by the end of the 4-month intervention period, all 3 groups had their depressions lift and reported fewer dysfunctional attitudes along with increased happiness and self-esteem. Aerobic exercise was just as effective at treating depression as was Zoloft, or as a combination of exercise and Zoloft. Yet exercise is a lot less expensive, usually with no side effects apart from soreness.
   Perhaps even more remarkably, 6 months later, participants who had recovered from their depressions were less likely to relapse if they had been in the exercise group (6 months ago!) than if they had been in the medication group."

She continues by saying: "No one in our society needs to be told that exercise is good for us. Whether you are overweight or have a chronic illness or are a slim couch potato, you've probably heard or read this dictum countless times throughout your life. But has anyone told you— indeed, guaranteed you—that regular physical activity will make you happier? I swear by it."

Any time one of the leading, conservative scientists in the field guarantees (!) ANYTHING I sit up straight and pay attention and, in this case, I put on my shoes and hit the trail. 🤓 So, how's your exercise looking these days?

What's your favorite form of exercise? Today is a good day to have fun rocking it?