Why doing too much exercise can be bad for mental health

DAILY exercise for 90 minutes or more might do wonders for your body, but it could make your mental health worse.

Researchers at Yale University and Oxford studied fitness regimes of 1.2 million people and how often they felt depressed or stressed. While those who did no physical exercise said they felt low 3.4 days every month as opposed to two days for those who exercised regularly, scientists found more exercise did not always produce a better outcome .

People who exercised for 90 minutes at a time had an extra day of poor mental health each month compared with those on 45-minute sessions.

“People believed the more you exercise the better your mental health, but our study suggests this is not the case,” said Dr Adam Chekroud, professor of psychiatry at Yale. “Doing exercise more than 23 times a month, or exercising for longer than 90 minutes is associated with worse mental health.”

Exercise reduces the risk of physical ill health, but its association with mental health is not so clear. The best mental benefits came in team sports, gym work, cycling and aerobics, with reductions in poor mental health days of up to 22.3 per cent.

Prof Stephen Lawrie, of Edinburgh University, said: “Activity is good for mental health but one can do too much. I suspect we all know people who seem addicted to exercise and if this starts to impact on other aspects of life, it might actually be bad for people.”

Dr Brendon Stubbs, from King’s College, London, said: “Guidelines recommend 150 minutes’ physical activity a week. People should find one they enjoy and do it regularly.” The study was published in The Lancet Psychiatry.