What Happens When You Exercise Three Times a Week

This new study result is surprising: Apparently, regular workout makes us happier than money in the long run. What is behind it?

We all know it: getting up to sport is usually much more difficult than the training itself. But afterwards we feel really great about it! This could explain the results of a major new study published in The Lancet by researchers from Yale and Oxford Universities. According to the study, a regular workout is better for our well-being than being financially well off.

The researchers collected data from over 1.2 million Americans and compared the effects of physical activity and financial situation on mental health. To do this, the test persons answered questionnaires in which they had to state, among other things, how often they felt mentally bad in the last 30 days, for example due to stress, how regularly they do sport and how much they earn. A total of 75 physical activities could be specified, such as cleaning and weight lifting.

Exercise makes you happy…

The conclusion: People who exercised regularly felt mentally unwell on an average of 35 days a year. In subjects who were hardly physically active, this was 18 days more. The scientists also compared the data with the income of the test persons. The physically active participants felt just as good as those who did not exercise, but earned about $25,000 more per year than the active persons. In other words, one would have to earn significantly more money to achieve the same happiness boost that sport has.

…but only in moderation

Does this mean that we have to lace up our sneakers and run every day? No! Because the study also proves that our well-being is improved through sport only for a certain amount of training per week. More precisely: three to five units of 30 to 60 minutes each should be ideal. In contrast, the mental health of the test persons who trained for more than three hours a day was worse than that of those who were not active at all. And: Sports in which one is in contact with others improve mental health the most. These include not only classic team sports such as football, but also, for example, cycling courses.