Why is it that many people don’t meet the daily amount of exercise? There is a rise in sedentary lifestyles which has been a big concern as lack of exercise is the leading cause of various health problems. There are multitudes of reasons why people live sedentary lifestyles but it's often hard to address these reasons. In Dr. Buhr’s talk, he addresses one problem that’s yet to be fully explored: the link between exposure to stress and engagement with physical activity. There is a possibility that exposure to stress can contribute to why people eat unhealthy and exercise less.
Dr. Buhr mentions an experiment conducted on rats that addresses the biological link between stress exposure and engagement with physical activity. One group of rats were exposed to stress, while another group wasn’t. The nonstressed group showed higher DA turnover compared to the stress group. DA turnover (or dopamine turnover) refers to the production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps with motivation, reward, and mood. Higher DA turnover indicates that exercise has rewarding properties and stress exposure decreases the rewarding benefits exercise has to offer.
Reflecting on this talk led me to wonder: does mental health play a role in exercise motivation?
A scientific finding published in 2021 addressed the relationship between mental health and physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic was a stressful time in everyone’s life as there was so much change and uncertainty. Researchers surveyed 1,669 people and found that respondents reported less physical activity and more sedentary behavior. Respondents felt too anxious or lacked motivation to exercise, while other respondents reported lack of physical space or equipment held them back from exercising. What I found interesting is that there are also respondents who remained physically active. Rather than physical goals like weight loss, they were more motivated to improve their mental health. Exercise is not simply based on willpower as stress and anxiety can play a role in motivation but the desire to feel better could also be a motivator to stay active.
Taking these findings together, it raises another important question: Is there a way to encourage physical activity while addressing mental health struggles people are facing?
We often treat exercise like it’s an optional activity that requires only motivation. However, Dr. Buhr’s talk and the COVID-19 study suggests it could be more complicated than just motivation. Stress can influence biological processes related to motivation, but stress can impact mental health which makes it harder for people to stay active. At the same time, there are people motivated for the mental health benefits exercise has to offer. To address physical exercise, it is a lot more than just encouraging people. We need to take mental health into consideration where we can better help people develop and maintain an active lifestyle.
References
Marashi, M. Y., Nicholson, E., Ogrodnik, M., Fenesi, B., & Heisz, J. J. (2021). A mental health paradox: Mental health was both a motivator and barrier to physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. PLoS ONE, 16(4), Article e0239244. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239244
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