Five weeks of walking around armed with poles in each hand could have a surprising effect on anyone with depression symptoms. What's more, it's also a low-impact workout that can suit people who are lacking energy or motivation.
"Physical exercise is an effective treatment for depression, yet little is known about the temporal dynamics of symptom improvement during exercise interventions," the researchers note in the study.
An international team of researchers found that adults with moderate to severe depression who took part in twice-weekly monitored Nordic walking sessions experienced substantial reductions in depressive symptoms, with the most dramatic improvements occurring during the first half of the 10-week program.
By the end of Week 10, between 35% and 53.6% of walkers had achieved what would be clinically described as remission.
Nordic walking involves traipsing about with specially designed poles that engage the upper and lower body. The researchers selected the activity because it's largely accessible, is low cost and also suitable for a wide range of fitness levels. It's worth noting that no adverse events were reported during the trial.
In the admittedly small study, the researchers recruited 64 individuals with moderate to severe depressive symptoms and randomly assigned them either a supervised Nordic walking program or educational newsletters about mental health. Participants in the walking group attended two one-hour sessions per week, exercising at a moderate intensity under the guidance of trained instructors.
By the fifth week, the Nordic walkers had meaningful improvements in their depression scores, while symptoms in the control group remained largely unchanged. The benefits continued through to the end of the 10-week study, although the rate of improvement slowed in the trial's second half.
"Interestingly, although the present study did not directly test optimal intervention length and did not compare different durations, our results suggest that substantial clinical improvements may be achieved within a much shorter time frame of five weeks, notably among individuals with severe depressive symptoms," the researchers write in their paper.
Participants with severe depression who were assigned Nordic walking sessions appeared to benefit the most. Overall, they experienced larger and faster reductions in symptoms in the first five weeks than those with moderate symptoms. The findings suggest that people experiencing severe depressive symptoms may be more responsive to structured exercise like this.
The researchers caution that the study has limitations, including a predominantly female participant group and the omission of people's medication and psychotherapy history. They also note that the social interaction and support provided through supervised group exercise may have contributed to the results.
However, the findings suggest that supervised Nordic walking could be a practical and accessible addition to existing depression treatments, particular for those with severe symptoms and when other kinds of exercise are too challenging.
"Supervised Nordic walking was found to be associated with substantial reductions in depressive symptoms within five weeks, particularly among individuals with severe depression," the researchers note.
The research was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
Source: MedicalXpress
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