Varying Effects of Exercise on Anxiety Levels 1

VARYING EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON ANXIETY LEVELS 1

Analysis of the Varying Effects of Exercise on Anxiety Levels in Different Individuals

Julie Kelly

Rowan University

INTRODUCTION

Physical activity is known to raise an individual’s positive self-concept, self-efficacy, ability to manage stress or mood changes and decrease anxiety (Pasco, Jacka, Williams, Brennan, Leslie, Berk 2011).Since physical activity increases the presence and action of monamine neurotransmitters, serotonin, neurotrophins and noradrenaline, the body is more equipped to handle stress; therefore, the management of stress is conquered, anxiety is lowered and the benefits become evident (Pasco et al 2011). There are countless psychological and physical benefits of daily physical activity, providing reason for members of society to lead a healthy lifestyle. While the physical benefits are obvious, the psychological ones are not as easily seen, however they are certainly present. The average American experiences dozens of stressors a day, negatively influencing their mood and anxiety level. However, in 1984 the American National Institute of Mental Health determined that mental health and exercise are correlated and the increase in exercise can lead to a reduced state of anxiety and negative mood (Bhui & Fletcher, 2000). Exercise can be proven to decrease anxiety because of the many factors that it influences. For example, physical activity has a positive influence on feelings of content, calmness and alertness, indicating that the decrease in anxiety is coupled with many other positive factors as well (KanningSchlicht, 2010). Evidence of the effects of exercise participation is validated through research conducted by studies analyzing focus areas such as the decrease of anxiety in schizophrenics, the specific mood reaction to exercise duration, intensity, type and experience of the exerciser and the impact of gender difference.

Background:

Many of these studies utilize similar scales when rating exercise and anxiety levels, indicating the credibility of the widely used and consistent measurement systems. The State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI/SAI) uses a scale of 20-80 in order to assess the level of stress, the higher the number, the higher the stress. It is the most commonly used form of inventory to determine anxiety (Vancamport, De Hert, Knapen, Wampers,Demunter, Deckx, & Probst, 2011). Another universal scale is the EFI or Exercise Induced Feeling Inventory. This requires participants to measure their mood levels on a scale of 1-5 to determine their feelings at that point in time. The purpose is to determine how exercise has an influence over mood factors regarding revitalization, peacefulness, positive interactions and physical fatigue (GauvinRejeski, 1993).

Impact of exercise on schizophrenia/anxiety:

In order to form the basis for the belief and proof that exercise has a strong correlation and influence on individual’s mood state, strong evidence is required. A study focused on the relationship between aerobic or yoga exercise and a decrease in the level of anxiety in schizophrenicsstrongly supports and establishes this thesis as valid (Vancampfort et al, 2011). The article notes that schizophrenics commonly experience feelings of stress and anxiety due to their disease; they have conflicts when it come to dealing with stress and are unable to cope, establishing their credibilityas appropriate subjectsfor observation. In order to measure levels of stress before and after physical activity, Vancampfort et al utilized the SAI and the Subjective Exercisers Experiences Scale (SEES). The SEES measured physiological stress, well-being and level of fatigue. The results of the study provided useful further information on the influence of exercise, specifically aerobic and yoga activity, and its strong correlation with the reduction of stress and anxiety. As schizophrenics are known to have high levels of stress, their level of reduction after activity proves that the relationship is indeed very strong.

Impact of exercise duration and intensity:

Studies have also gone further in depth in order to examine the link between exercise and mood; for example, many have observed the actual effect intensity level and duration of the workout may have on individuals. Taken from ACSM, 1998 a particular study notes that “it is known that intensity of aerobic exercise determines both psychological and physiological benefits”(Asci, 2003). This emphasizes the necessity for studies to understand the link between the two and observe how changes in duration and intensity impact mood. Rocheleau, Webster, Bryan & Frazier (2003) set out to understand how these different factors in a workout play a vital role in mood level. Measurements of the length of time of physical activity and the level of intensity at which it was performed were examined. In order to provide justification for the study, Rocheleau et al introduced the idea that many individuals do not continue an exercise routine because they do not immediately see the results they desire. This leads them to stop before they can experience the benefits, in this case the psychological benefits. The goal of the researchers was to establish a way for people to create routines of physical activity that can give immediate satisfaction, psychologically. In order to accomplish this, it was necessary to determine what factors are the mostimportant in a workout for the best psychological improvements.

The study utilized a different type of mood scale, but also a widely used one. The Profile of Mood States (POMS) examines levels of mood in six categories: tension, depression, anger, vigor, fatigue and confusion (Rocheleau et al, 2003). The inventory was taken prior to the workout as well as right after. Afterwards, the other specifics of the workout (length, intensity etc) were also recorded. With the results, the researchers determined that the longer participants engaged in physical activity and the increased level of exertion in one workout session led to higher positive mood states, or a lesser chance of anxiety and negativity.

This theory that increased exercise duration increases positive mood factors, contributing to a lower anxiety rating, is also supported by a similar study performed by Pasco et al in 2011. Using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the researchers analyzed information from 276 female subjects. Their level of activity was recorded as very active, moderately active and sedentary. The analysis was based off of the information gathered from the PANAS and basic information about the female’s background (age, height, weight, medications) was utilized to determine the relationship between mood and level of activity. The studyfound that those who led very active lifestyles were the most likely to experience positive mood states (excitement, enthusiasm, alertness) as a result of their activity, following the trend of increased time/exercise and decreased anxiety (Pasco et al 2011).

Impact on novice versus regular exercisers:

Similarly, researchers Hallgren, Moss and Gastin conducted a more detailed and precise experiment in 2010 to add to the information already found on correlations between mood and exercise routine. The goal was to determine the specific effects intense exercise performance can have on two different types of exercisers, the daily exerciser and the novice exerciser. The researchers concluded that mood and anxiety benefits are evident among regular exercisers and not in new exercisers. These results allowed them to draw the overall conclusion that a regular exercise routine proves more beneficial to increased mood states.

The study focused on mood and anxiety changes before and after the exercise performance in both types of individuals. In order to properly analyze the mood of the participants at appropriate increments, EFI,POMS and SAI were taken four times: 24 hours in advance, right before the test, ten minutes after the test and again 25 minutes post-test. Participants were asked to cycle, at 50 RPM increasing resistance every two minutes, to the point of exhaustion.Regular exercisers scored remarkably higher on the EFI, indicating that their mood state readily increased positively as a result of their intense workout. On the other hand, novice exercisers experienced a drastic decrease in mood 10 minutes after their workout before completely returning to their original mood before exercise after 25 minutes. The other measured categories followed similar patterns to the EFI; regular exercisers experienced greater benefits and sustained increases in mood states and decreases in anxiety while non-regular exercisers likely returned to their pre-workout state within 25 minutes of the workout (Hallgren et al 2010). The study set out to prove that experienced exercisers gain positive psychological results from bursts of vigorous exercise while novice exercisers are not able to fully benefit as much from the workout. Reasons such as their lack of knowledge of proper exercise and their own capability and fitness level certainly play a role in why they may experience varied emotions after such an intense workout.

Impact of exercise type:

While some studies focused on the duration and intensities, others concentrated on the actual type of exercise being performed. For example, running is a common experimental study. Researchers set out to observe runner’s habits and mood activity and formulate statistical information in order to determine the anxiety level of runners and how their physical activity influenced those levels. This specific investigation of running and the correlation on mood and anxiety only further reinforces the support available to evidence how anxiety and exercise are interrelated.

Consistent with previous studies, runners were asked to complete EFI and SAI. For 21 days, the runners completed a daily questionnaire about their overall feelings whilerecordingrunning times and distances. By the conclusion of the three weeks, it was found that anxiety levels were noticeably lower on days in which the individual participated in running and higher when they did not (Szabo, Frenkl, Janek, Kalman, Laszay, 1998).

While this study analyzed a specific form of exercise, the study conducted by Hallgren et al that was previously described did not analyze the changes in mood for different types of exercise. With a thorough analysis of the different types of exercisers in addition to different forms of exercise, a more concrete and complete conclusion could have been drawn about the specific type of exercise that may influence psychological states better or differently.

Impact of gender:

Factors that cannot be changed, but can be observed, also play a major role in the difference of mood influence. For example, gender.Men and women often experience different and varying affects of specific workout routines. Many studies have focused on this as an important aspect regarding the relationship between anxiety and exercise because they want to understand how and why females and males may benefit in different ways. One specific study found that male’s anxiety lowerswhen they complete a longer workout, the longer the workout the greater possibilityfor an increase in mood state. However, the study found that women were not affected in the same way at all; no correlation between a decrease in their anxiety and exercise duration was found (Bhui & Fletcher, 2000).

On the other hand,Rocheleau et al (2003) discovered in their study that femalesdid experience lower negative mood states after their workout than males. This indicates a gap in observations as it is clear that women and men and their moods and anxiety levels after a workout seem to vary according to the study, providing a need to determine what factors may cause this disparity.

To further support this, a study thatobserved the correlation between runners participating in a race and their levels of anxiety also went into detail about gender differences. The researchers noted that women were much more anxious before their race than men were and hypothesized that it could have been a result of the female’s lack of experience in competitive events (Clingman & Hilliard, 1998). This theory draws upon the idea that females possess a higher anxiety rating prior to a workout, therefore indicating why they would be more prone to experience the decreasing anxiety effects on a greater level post-exercise. Yeung, 1996 supports this idea; he says “individuals who report a worse mood before exercise generally derive the most subsequent benefit” (Rocheleau, 2004).

Conclusion:

Clearly the benefits of exercise and mood are well known; there is no argument against the fact that many gain countless positive results from an increase in activity. Not only does it offer physical changes, it offers vital psychological advantages and allows individuals to better manage mood and anxiety levels. The studies described all relate back to the way in which one can gain these mood benefits. The wide variety of conducted studies indicates that researchers are constantly and consistently looking for new ways to prove to society that exercise can have a multitude of positive results. With the results of studies, new ways to formulate exercise routines and innovative ideas on specific approaches are created. Through the depiction of the way exercise influences the anxiety of schizophrenics, a baseline for the entire theory is established. From that point, thedescribed studies are justified by the proof that this theory is accurate. The influence of exercise duration, intensity, typeof exercise andexperience of exercisers all play a role. Analysis was done through dozens of studies with in depth experiments that chose these specific areas to concentrate on. Furthermore, the gender of a person has been proven to strongly influence the way in which a brain responds to a workout and the level of anxiety pre and post workout, as indicated in the studies. There is a disparity among some however; as different studies have conflicting results, the actual mood impact of male versus female in a workout is not definite. A further look into the specific contrast of male and female anxietyafter exercise involving varying levels of intensity and duration would put all of these studies together to formulate a definite conclusion on the overall impact of exercise on anxiety.

Study Population:

I will study an equal number of male and female students from Rowan University who are using the Recreation Center for their workout. More specifically, I will be studying both males and females who engage in cardio activity versus those who participate in weight lifting in order to compare both of the results on their perceived level of anxiety.

Research Question #1: Do males and females experience different results regarding perceived anxiety levels after a workout?

Research Question #2: Does the difference in the type of workout performed by males and females play an important role in the perceived stress level post workout? (Does the perceived stress level of a male decrease more after performing a weight-lifting session or a cardio session? Similarly, does the perceived stress of a female decrease more after a cardio session rather or a weight lifting session?)

METHODS

Subjects:

Subjects will consist of ten students from Rowan University. Five of the subjects will be female and five of the subjects will be male. Subject selection criterion includes students who use the Rowan University Recreation Center for a daily workout.

Instrumentation:

The survey asks the nominal question regarding gender and proceeds with an ordinal measurement scale to divide the date into categories. Subjects were asked to rate their levels of perceived anxiety and their answers to various other questions on a scale of 1-5 to determine the differences in anxiety between male and female and type of work out performed.

1. Gender: Male Female

1. Please rate how often you experience anxiety and/or stress on a scale of 1-5 (1=not often to 5=very often)1 2 3 4 5

1. Do you use exercise as a stress reliever? Yes No

1. Do you prefer a cardio workout or a weight-lifting workout? Cardio Weight-lifting

1. What was your perceived anxiety level before a workout?

1. What was your perceived anxiety level after a workout?

1. What was your perceived anxiety level before a cardio workout?

1. What is your perceived anxiety level after a cardio workout?

1. What was your perceived anxiety level before a weight-lifting session?

1. What is your perceived anxiety level after a weight-lifting session?

Procedures:

All participants in the study were chosen at random by the experimenter. An equal number of females and males exercisers who were using the Recreation facility at Rowan University were chosen. These students did not need to meet any inclusion regarding their stress level prior to the distribution of the study as it assumed that all college students experience some sort of perceived anxiety level throughout their day. The goal of the study is to compare the differences in anxiety levels between males and females AND to determine if the type of exercise performed by either gender also plays a role. The only inclusion criteria for participants was to ensure that they have used the Recreation facility in the past week and have performed cardio or weight lifting exercise routines in order to allow to proper analysis of recent and accurate data.

The survey was administered to ten students and they were asked to fill it out based on their most recent workout. Once it was completed, the researcher gathered the surveys and thanked the participant for filling it out. Participants were given an index card with a motivational quote written on it as a thank you for their participation and motivation to continue performing their best in the gym, even with their assumed anxiety levels.