The Sweaty Workout Scientifically Proven to Help Fight Depression

Regular exercise, in any form, is as good for our minds as it is for our bodies. It is proven to produce happy hormones, like dopamine and serotonin, and help prevent disease. But could it also be a way to overcome or at least alleviate more serious mental health problems, like depression?

Potentially, yes. A new study from Massachusetts General Hospital found that adults who participated in at least two hot yoga classes per week experienced a remarkable 50% (or more) reduction in depressive symptoms. What’s even more remarkable: The depression experienced by 44 percent of these new yogis was considered in remission after the eight-week study ended.

The research saw 80 participants randomly divided into two groups, with one group doing at least two 90-minute hot yoga sessions (at a temperature of around 100F) per week. The second group was placed on a waiting list and therefore did not do yoga during the study. Participants’ depression levels were assessed via a clinician-approved scale called the Inventory of Depressive Symptoms (IDS-CR).

With such impressive results, even those who received half the prescribed dose of hot yoga found that their depression symptoms were reduced. Maren Nyer, assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and lead author of the study, says yoga and other heat-based interventions could potentially change the course [of] treatment of patients suffering from depression, by offering a non-drug approach with additional physical benefits.

With more science yet to be discovered about whether unheated yoga could achieve similar results, studies like these serve as a reminder of the power of movement and heat therapy to help balance the mind, body, and soul . Using a sauna, whether via an infrared blanket at home or at your local gym, has been linked to decreased stress levels, improved sleep, immunity, metabolism and circulation, and can help rid the body of unwanted toxins.

Meanwhile, yoga is often recommended as a complementary activity to talking therapies, with many mental health professionals seeing this type of movement (and other forms, such as trauma release exercises) as a useful way to release trapped or stagnant emotions. If you’ve ever tried doing hip-opening poses during yoga, you may have experienced an emotional high, possibly anger or even tears. Indeed, it is said that the hips are an area of ​​the body where many of us store emotions, and yoga allows us to release them.