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High Intensity Weight Training Helps You Lose Weight And Keep It Off!

September 29th, 2010 No comments
high intensity weight training helps you slim down and tone up

High intensity weight training is a scientifically proven way to reduce body fat.

High Intensity Weight Training Helps You Lose Weight And Keep It Off!

Most equate aerobics with weight loss not high intensity weight training. Weight training is generally perceived as an activity for those interested in building big and bulky muscles and not for people trying to lose weight, however as many who have been frustrated by their lack of progress on the treadmill can attest- weight training or more specifically high intensity weight training is the best way to tone up and slim down. The fear of building oversized muscles is understandable- as television, books and magazines regularly bombard us with images of steroid using male and female bodybuilders- a look that most find unappealing. The reality is that without resorting to unmentionable combinations of drugs, while following a regime calling for enormous quantities of food far above what the average human being could regularly consume, even the hardest and most conscientious weight trainers will never get that big naturally. It simply doesn’t happen by accident.

What does happen however to the men and women that dare to weight train hard and heavy is that they get smaller as they see their body fat levels reduced from the high intensity weight training. Your muscle size will increase if you weight train correctly, but not in titanic proportions, just enough to give your body a toned and sculpted look as your body fat is reduced from the increase in metabolism that results from high intensity weight training.

Low Intensity vs High Intensity Weight Training

If you are serious about losing weight and toning up science says you should focus your energy on high intensity weight training using challenging not overly light weights to burn more calories! A study conducted at Georgia Southern University had participants performing resistance exercises at low intensities using a little less than half of their maximum weight for 15 repetitions during one session and the same resistance exercise at a higher intensity and heavier weight for 8 repetitions at 85 % of their one repetition maximum. After measuring the subjects for up to 2 hours after the workouts, researchers discovered that the heavier weights and higher intensity exercise produced a far greater excess post exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) than the higher repetition low intensity exercise. [1] Excess post exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) is associated with an elevated consumption of fuel in the body causing fat stores to be broken down and free fatty acids (FFA) released into the blood.[2]

High Intensity Weight Training And Weight Loss In Women

Several long term studies also support the idea that high intensity weight training is an efficient method of losing body fat thanks to the metabolic boost that occurs after the workout. One six year study of 122 post menopausal women published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise concluded that ‘resistance training is a viable long-term method to prevent weight gain and deleterious changes in body composition in postmenopausal women.’[3] Researchers used previously sedentary women in their fifties and had them perform eight basic weight training exercises for two sets at 70% to 80% of their one repetition maximum three times a week plus progressive weight bearing stretching and balance movements. Body weight and fat percentages were measured annually using anthropometry and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. After adjusting for age, years on hormone therapy, change in lean soft tissue, baseline body composition, and baseline habitual exercise they saw a significant reduction in body weight, fat and trunk fat  over the six year period due to the weight training exercises. Interestingly enough those that did more military presses and squats had the highest reduction in weight and body fat.

Another study published in the American Journal Of Clinical Nutrition of 164 postmenopausal women doing high intensity weight training twice a week for two years suggested that

strength training is an efficacious intervention for preventing percentage body fat increases and attenuating intraabdominal fat [visceral abdominal fat] increases in overweight and obese premenopausal women. This is relevant to public health efforts for obesity prevention because most weight gain can be assumed to be fat, including abdominal fat. [4]

The study went on to say that American women ages 23-44 on average tend to gain 0.5 to 1 kg per year, most of which is fat and recognized that although few midlife women participate in any form of strength training, it should be considered as an intervention for preventing age-associated fat increases in the this population.

High Intensity Weight Training Works for Everybody!

What does this mean? Simple, the stereotype that weight training is for men or that weight training gives you oversized muscles needs to be put aside as it is simply untrue. Most gym goers and exercise enthusiasts that focus on aerobics as their primary activity see little in terms of long term body composition change while negative and erroneous attitudes towards weight training prevent most (especially women) from utilizing a form of exercise that is scientifically proven to be effective for weight loss, overall body fat and visceral abdominal fat reduction. So pick up some weights and learn to challenge yourself in the weight room- you will be all the better for doing it!

References
1.          Thornton MK, Potteiger JA. “Effects of resistance exercise bouts of different intensities but equal work on EPOC.” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise

2.         Bahr R (1992). “Excess postexercise oxygen consumption–magnitude, mechanisms and practical implications”. Acta Physiologica Scandinavica. Supplementum

3.         Bea JW, Cussler EC, Going SB, Blew RM, Metcalfe LL, Lohman TG. “Resistance training predicts 6-yr body composition change in postmenopausal women.” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise

4.         Schmitz KH, Hannan PJ, Stovitz SD, Bryan CJ, Warren M, Jensen MD. “Strength training and adiposity in premenopausal women: strong, healthy, and empowered study.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition


Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.

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High Intensity Training As An Alternative Treatment for Depression

September 23rd, 2010 No comments

Studies have found that high intensity training can signifcantly reduce symptoms of depression

High Intensity Training As An Alternative Treatment for Depression

Clinical depression is unfortunately a common occurrence in the United States. According to statistics from the U.S. National Comorbidity Survey, 16% of Americans will suffer from a clinically defined depressive disorder during the course of their lifetime and conventional treatments can be often difficult to administer. Among the cases looked at by the Cormorbidity Survey only 22% received adequate treatment leaving the majority without proper treatment or diagnosis.(1)  Further compounding the problem is the high rate of adverse effects that come from the use of antidepressants and the high dropout rates among users. This phenomena is particularly stronger among older adults who studies have shown to be less tolerant of antidepressants than their younger counterparts. Meta-analysis of antidepressant trials in older adults found that the dropout rate was 25% with 60% experiencing what were termed adverse effects during an average treatment period of only 5 weeks.(2) That being said the search for viable and non toxic alternatives for the treatment of depression should be a key priority in mental health research, especially for the older members of our population. Exercise has thus far been positively viewed as a potential alternative treatment with most of the research focusing on the use of aerobic exercise. However randomized controlled trials have also identified significant improvements in clinically depressed older and younger adults, both male and female through the use of resistance training. (3-7)

Weight Lifting Found To Be As Effective As Aerobics In Relieving Depression

One study conducted at the University of Rochester and published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that weight lifting was as effective as aerobic exercise in improving clinical depression.(6) The study involved 40 women, all clinically diagnosed with a depressive disorder who were randomly assigned to three groups for 8 weeks- one group with a exercise regiment involving running (aerobic exercise), the second group employing a weight lifting program while the final group remained on a wait list as a control doing no extra activities during the two month period. Subjects were reassessed during the course of the study, after the study and then at 1, 7 and 12 month follow up intervals. The results were consistent across the board with both exercise regimes- running (aerobics) and weight lifting significantly reducing depression as compared to the control group even though no truly significant fitness changes were seen in either group. The study concluded that both forms of exercise were equally effective and that an aerobic effect was not responsible for improvements in depression among people who exercise.

Exercise Intensity Is Directly Related To Relief Of Depressive Symptoms

Another study, published in the Journal of Gerontology sought to discover whether there was a relationship between the intensity of the exercise performed and the degree of reduction in depression among older adults. In this randomized control trial sixty older adults with diagnosed depressive disorders were assigned to three groups. Group one involved supervised progressive resistance high intensity training at a threshold of 80% of their maximum load for three days a week for eight week period. Group two involved low  intensity progressive resistance training at 20% of maximum load for the same length of time and group three received standard care from their GP with a mandate to not exercise for the duration of the trial.

The study found a whooping 50% reduction in the Hamilton Rating Scale of Depression in 61% of the high intensity training group and that ‘strength gain was directly related to the reduction in depressive symptoms’. (8) Vitality quality of life scale improved more in the high intensity group than the others and while sleep quality was improved in all participants the greatest relative change took place in the high intensity training group. With such impressive results there is a real need for much further research into whether this could be a clinically prescribed treatment for depression and possibly an alternative to the use of anti-depressant medication. One important factor that needs to be studied is the duration of exercise sessions required to effect a reduction in depressive symptoms as all of the exercise protocols used in the trials lasted for the standard time of 60 minutes each. One of the biggest drawbacks to the use of exercise as a tool for people suffering from depression is the fact that the motivation required to train for an hour three times a week is hard to come by within the general population, much less an individual suffering from depressive disorders. However, with so much research showing that short high intensity sessions, lasting anywhere from 6 to 10 minutes can bring about increases in strength, muscle mass, endurance and coordination it might be a more viable alternative for individuals who would find it difficult to stick to a longer regime.(9)(10)(11) In addition some data suggest that ‘a low-frequency, high intensity approach to training is associated with greater long-term adherence as compared with a high-frequency, low-intensity approach.’(12)

So certainly more in terms of research is needed and many argue that the lack of it stems primarily from the enormous profit that depression provides to pharmaceutical companies, who have considerable power over mental health policy and protocols and that there would be little to be gained if depression could be treated simply by having someone exercise three days a week. Whatever the reasons, it is indeed a potentially invaluable tool that could in some way help the millions suffering from depression.

Related Articles: Is Exercise As Effective For Relieving Depression As Therapy and Medication?

References:

1. Hirschfield RA, Keller M, Panico S, et al. The national depressive and manic depression association consensus statement on the under treatment of depression. Journal of American Medicine

2.Mittman N, Hermann N, Einarson T, et al. The efficacy safety and tolerability of antidepressants in late life depression: a meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders.

3. McNeil K, LeBlanc E, Joyce M. The effect of exercise on depressive symptoms in the moderately depressed elderly. Psychology of Aging

4.Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Moore KA, et al. Effects of exercise training on older patients with major depression. Archives of Internal Medicine

5. Singh NA, Clements KM, Fiatarone MA. A randomized controlled trial of progressive resistance training in depressed elders. Journal of Gerontology Medical Sciences

6.Doyne EJ, Ossip-Klein DJ, Bowman ED, Osborn KM, McDougall-Wilson IB, Neimeyer IB. Running Versus Weight Lifting in the Treatment of Depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

7. Martinsen EW, Hoffart A, Solberg O. Comparing aerobic and non aerobic forms of exercise in the treatment of clinical depression: a randomized trial. Comprehensive Psychiatry

8. Singh NA, Stavrinos TM, Scarbeck Y, Galambos G, Liber C, Singh MA. A randomized controlled trial of high versus low intensity weight training versus general practitioner care for clinical depression in older adults. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences

9.Burgomaster KA, Hughes SC, Heigenhauser GJF, Bradwell SN,Gibala MJ. Six sessions of sprint interval training increases muscle oxidative potential and cycle endurance capacity in humans. Journal of Applied Physiology

10. Coyle EF. Very intense exercise-training is extremely potent and time efficient: a reminder. Journal of Applied Physiology

11. Burgomaster KA, Howarth KR, Phillips S, Rakobowchuk M, MacDonald MJ, McGee SL, Gilba MJ.Similar metabolic adaptations during exercise after low volume sprint interval and traditional endurance training in humans.Journal of Applied Physiology

12. Gilba MJ. High-intensity Interval Training: A Time-efficient Strategy for Health Promotion. Canada Current Sports Medicine Reports.

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.

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A 10 Step Guide To Healthy Eating

September 16th, 2010 No comments

A 10 Step Guide To Healthy Eating

Eating healthy today isn’t as easy as it might have been for those in generations past, but as waistlines expand around the world and mortality rates climb from diet related diseases- healthy eating is not only a cosmetic concern in terms of maintaining an ideal weight- but it is also an important factor in our longevity. It isn’t always easy and you have to keep in mind that Rome was not built in a day and you should not expect yourself to be able to eat healthy foods at all times right off the bat. Like anything else, consistency in healthy eating is a skill that comes with practice. The more you do it , the better you get at it. It took me the better part of 15 years to be able to consistently stay away from processed foods, and not for lack of trying!  The key is to be patient with yourself and don’t think about never eating some of your favorite foods ever again- it will just drive you insane (and make you more likely to eat it!) Instead take it day by day, one step at a time- think about eating well today and stay in the moment. As the days go by you’ll find it easier and easier to stay on point.

That being said here are 10 steps to help you stay on your path towards healthy eating:

Step 1: Lead Yourself Away From Temptation By Stocking Up On Healthy Foods

Eliminate temptation at home. Clear out all the junk from your cupboards, and get the whole family on board. It is so much easier to change your diet when you are not surrounded by the foods you should not eat. At work you may not have that much control over what you are exposed to, but I always have my clients include their entire family in their weight loss endeavors. The good part is that everyone will be all the healthier as a result!

Step 2: Eat A Large Healthy Breakfast

Eat a large breakfast. My experience has been that individuals that skip breakfast almost always have difficulty towards the afternoon to evening avoiding junk foods. A good breakfast will do wonders to regulate your appetite, and you will be surprised at how quickly the late night cravings disappear! The mantra I keep repeating to my clients is to always breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and eat dinner like a pauper- follow that rule and you will be in shape in no time. (You can download my free weight loss ebook on healthy breakfast choices here!)

Step 3: Get A Support System

Let everyone at work know that you are trying to eat better and actively recruit them. Not eating what everyone else is eating can be a real strain at times and it helps to have people around who understand and support your endeavors.

Step 4: Set Realistic Goals

Set realistic expectations for yourself by remembering to practice moderation, and don’t feel badly if you indulge. The guilt that we feel after eating something that we should not will work against you, in that it will cement the idea of eating the wrong food in your mind for a long time afterwards, as you keep on beating yourself up for slipping. In so doing you are actually more likely to do it again. The best bet is to forget about the past, (since there is nothing that you can do about it unless you have access to a working time machine) and instead just pick yourself up and keep on going. Everyone slips sometimes and we forget instantly how well we have eaten for the day and instead focus on the one bad food that we may have eaten. So be patient with yourself and keep things in perspective. (See my article- Why Is Staying On A Diet So Hard)

Step 5: Know Your Problem Times & Triggers

Identify those times of the day when you’re most vulnerable to a junk-food attack. Is it that relentless 8 pm craving? The phone call from your client-from-hell that spurs a run to McDonald’s? Stress at work? Stress from the kids? Whatever the trigger, prepare ahead of time by having healthy, flavorful alternatives on hand. Better yet, schedule alternate activities for those times when you’re most likely to face temptation.

Step 6: Make Good Choices When Eating Out

When eating out choose grilled or broiled versions of foods that are typically fried, don’t eat the bread and ask for all the sauces on the side. In the better restaurants, you can ask for salt free food preparation, but almost everywhere (except fast food restaurants) you can find entrees that are mainly natural foods sources like chicken, fish, or lean meats that can fit in with any healthy diet.

Step 7: Never Let Yourself Get Too Hungry

Try to eat every 3 to 4 hours so your body always has a steady stream of nutrients. That will help keep your blood sugar nice and level and help keep the cravings away. As an aside, never go food shopping hungry as well. You’ll be more likely to buy things that you shouldn’t!

Step 8: Keep Busy

Sitting in front of the television late in the evening can be a formula for bad eating habits. In addition to exercising three times a week- you should find other activities to keep you occupied. (I don’t recommend any more than that and as great as exercise may feel, if you train too often you will end up being overtrained and diminish any potential gains you are getting from the activity.) Instead find a hobby over simply going home and watching television night after night, as it will indeed help you stay on track, diet wise.

Step 9: Prepare Your Own Meals

Learn to cook. It is not easy to always find the right foods, and so you end up giving in to the always available junk foods that are everywhere. The best way to beat this is to cook your own foods and bring it with you. A great idea is to cook large quantities and put extra meals in the freezer. You will also need to get some containers to carry your foods around with you.

Step 10: Plan Ahead!

Plan ahead. If you know that you are going to be gone for a certain period of time, carry enough food to eat for the duration, and then some. When an aircraft takes off from an airport, they always carry contingency fuel, just in case something happens and they end up spending more time in the air that they planned. You should do the same and bring along some extras with your meals like non perishable snacks (like nuts, etc) so you don’t get stuck with nothing to eat in a sea of fast foods. This is perhaps the best advice I can give, and is what helped me and so many others that I have worked with over the years get away from eating the wrong foods.

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.

Does Weight Training Really Reduce Breast Size In Women?

September 9th, 2010 1 comment

Does Weight Training Really Reduce Breast Size In Women?

One of the most common myths about weight training for women is that weight training reduces breast size and creates a flat manly looking chest. This misconception has prevented many women from incorporating weight training into their quests to lose weight and firm up their bodies- a path that inevitably leads to failure as weight training is without question the most effective way to really tone up and develop a tight body. But what about the prospect of becoming flat chested? To answer that I can honestly say that unless you plan on starving yourself  or using anabolic steroids, women have little to worry about in terms of their breasts getting smaller from weight training. In fact most tend to see a slight increase over time!

Weight training properly executed with sufficient intensity, adequate rest and nutrition will bring about an increase in muscle size of any part of the body that is being worked.  This holds true whether it be it the pectoralis muscles of the chest (or pecs as many call them) or the muscles of your arms and legs. The way that this process (hypertrophy) works is that individual muscle fibers will get bigger (slightly bigger, that is, you won’t see mountains of muscle sprout on a woman without the use of anabolic steroids as it takes men with ten times more testosterone, years upon years to develop a muscular physique) or they will split and then get slightly bigger. The fibers of your pectoral muscles are all constituents of skeletal muscle whereas breast tissue is made up of sex specific adipose tissue (fat), ligaments, connective tissue and mammary glands. There are no skeletal muscle fibers found in the breasts as they simply sit directly over the pectoralis muscles. Weight training therefore can have no direct effect on them whatsoever.

Weight Training Doesn’t Affect Breasts Only The Muscles Underneath

Weight Training Does Not Affect Breast Tissue

Breast schematic diagram (adult human female cross section) - Legend: 1. Chest wall 2. Pectoralis muscles 3. Lobules 4. Nipple 5. Areola 6. Duct 7. Fatty tissue 8. Skin. Image courtesy Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator

Breasts thus cannot hypertrophy or get larger due to weight training, but by increasing the size (slightly, ladies) of the pectoral muscles under the breasts there will be a natural increase in overall chest size. It may then appear that the breasts look a bit larger as they will stand up a bit more (which, is something most women would not mind) but the actual size and composition of the breasts themselves will not change. A study conducted in the University of Arizona back in 1985 confirmed this phenomenon in a 21 day study that used concentric and eccentric contractions with a specialized chest exercise machine. After the three week program researchers found no changes whatsoever in the size, shape or volume of the breasts of the women participating after extensive scientific measurement.

So what about those flat chested women in the magazines with thickly developed chest muscles and no breasts? First off all the female bodybuilders that we typically see use drugs to develop unnatural degrees of muscular development and body fat reduction and do not represent in any way what a regular woman would look like if they weight trained. The size and shape of breasts in a healthy woman is fairly resistant to change as long as there are normal conditions of hydration and food availability, but in cases of extreme under nutrition (for example the type of starvation diets that bodybuilders undergo to get that lean and vascular look or someone with an eating disorder like bulimia or anorexia) where there is a severe reduction of body-weight and overall body fat the breasts which have a high proportion of fat, will shrink. In the case of the female bodybuilders- you see the dense muscle tissue in their chest area and no breasts and the assumption is erroneously made that somehow the weight training made their breasts go away whereas the truth is that the shrinkage came from the reduction in body fat and nothing else.

Weight Training Can Help You Look Better All Round!

That being said, natural female bodybuilders who don’t aspire to have 3% body fat levels (and can’t without the use of potentially dangerous male hormones, growth hormones, insulin and thyroid drugs) don’t tend to have the same flat chested look as their drug using counterparts, nor the thickly muscled pecs that many find a bit off putting. There is some reduction as they diet down, but most of the size lost in their chest area comes back when they resume eating normally. The other factor that can cause breast size to change is obesity- in which case the breasts become larger as body fat increases past healthy levels. Some women who are overweight look positively on this increase in breast size and are reluctant to exercise or diet for fear of reducing their bust size. For someone who is overweight to trim down to a really toned body, there will be some loss of breast size- from the loss of body fat. But keep in mind that weight training can help lift what remains and make you look better all round!

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York metropolitan area and need help losing weight or taking your body to the next level give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420 or click here to get started with 50% off your trial personal training session.

 

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Is Exercise As Effective For Relieving Depression As Therapy and Medication?

September 2nd, 2010 No comments

Is Exercise As Effective For Relieving Depression As Therapy and Medication?

 

Exercise may be a viable treatment for depression.

Depression affects over 340 million people across the globe and here in the United States it is estimated that about 16% percent of the population will suffer from a major depressive disorder (MDD) during the course of their lives,  with women being almost twice as likely than their male counterparts to develop a disorder. 1,2 With all the emphasis with regards to health care on obesity related illnesses it is often overlooked that depression is on track to become the second largest contributor to the global burden of disease by the year 2020.3 We know that physical inactivity increases the likelihood and duration of depression and that physical activity, whether it be work related, exercise or recreation significantly reduces the risk of developing a depressive disorder. This holds true across the board for people of all races and socio-ecomomic levels, but for those adverse to conventional therapeutic interventions, the question remains, can exercise be as effective as conventional therapy and medication in relieving depression?

Studies Find That Exercise Is A Strong Preventative Against Depression

 

In 2001 the British Medical Journal did a review of the antidepressant effects of exercise treatments. After looking at a total of fourteen randomized controlled trials they found that the positive effects of exercise treatment for depression when compared to no treatment at all was statistically significant. There were major reductions in depression ratings among those engaged in exercise programs as opposed to those who were inactive. There was some debate over the validity of this review as some of the participants in the studies may have had subclinical mood problems rather than fully diagnosed major depressive disorders. That being said the idea that exercise treatment is more effective than no treatment at all is supported by at least two other systematic reviews4, 5,6 and most of the systematic reviews find as well that ‘the antidepressant effect size of exercise can be comparable to that of psychotherapy and to that of pharmacotherapy.’ 7, 6, 8, 9

The Anti-Depressant Effects Of Exercise May Be Comparable To Drug & Therapy Interventions

Does this mean that you should focus solely on exercise as a way to relieving depressive symptoms? Not at all, as there is a saying that in a battle one should always go down fighting with all swords drawn from their scabbards and the same applies to clinical depression. Given the effects of exercise on mood elevation, the combined use of therapy and drug interventions might result in faster onset of antidepressant action, so drug and therapy should not be instantly ruled out.10 More trials are needed before exercise can be recommended clinically as a prescription for dealing with depression, but if exercise could act as an immediate salve to the symptoms of depression given that antidepressant medications and therapy all take weeks to months before clinical improvements can be seen whereas the positive effects of exercise occur much faster. Most importantly, the use of exercise protocols are safe and do not interact negatively in any way with other drugs or therapeutic treatments.

Some experts argue that adherence to a standardized exercise program is the number one reason for failure among the general population and that it would be far more difficult for a severely depressed individual to find the motivation to exercise on a regular basis, but given the promising fairly recent results of brief high intensity weight training programs on relieving depressive symptoms11 it might indeed be viable if the duration is considerably short especially as adherence to regularly taking anti-depressant drugs is equally a problem among individuals with depression. At the end of the day what these findings really highlight is that exercise and physical activity have a major role to play in our overall mental health and that more research should be done into its potential use as a clinical anti-depression prescription. In coming articles we will explore the relevance of short high intensity training on depression and how it might make getting the anti-depressive benefits of exercise far more attainable to those that find it hard to stick with an exercise program to being with.

References:

  1. Greden JF. The burden of recurrent depression: causes, consequences and future prospects
  2. Kessler RC, Berglund P, Demier O, et al. The epidemiology of major depressive disorder; results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication- JAMA 2003
  3. Lopez AD, Murray CC. The global burden of disease, 1990-2020. Nat Med 1988
  4. Craft LL, Landers DM. The effect of exercise on clinical depression and depression resulting from mental illness: a meta analysis. J Sport Exerc Psychol 1998.
  5. Stathopoulou G, Powers MB, Berry AC, et al. Exercise interventions for mental health; a quantitative and qualitative review. Clin Psychol Sci Pract 2006.
  6. North TC, McCullagh P, Tran ZV. Effect of exercise on depression. Exerc Sport Sci Rev 1990.
  7. Lawlor DA, Hopker SW. The effectiveness of exercise as an intervention in the management of depression; systematic review and meta-regression analysis of randomized controlled trials. Br Med J 2001.
  8. Martinsen EW. Physical activity and depression: clinical experience. ACTA Psychiatr Scand Suppl 1994.
  9. Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Moore KA, et al. Effects of exercise training on older patients with major depression. Arch Intern Med 1999
  10. Marije R, Collins K, Fitterling H. Physical exercise and depression. Mount Sinai School Of Medicine NY
  11. Singh, N, Stavrinos, TM, Scarbek Y, et al. A randomized controlled trial of high versus low intensity weight training versus general practitioner care for clinical depression in older adults. Journal of Gerontology 2005

 

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.

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