If you spend too much time working or worrying, you may be in danger of exhausting yourself mentally and emotionally. Why don’t you spend a few hours releasing all that negative energy at the gym? According to a new study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, the more hours you spend working out, the less likely you’ll succumb to depression and burnout.

Over nine years, researchers studied a total of 1,632 healthy Israeli workers from both public and private sectors and divided them into four groups. The first group did not engage in any form of physical activity, the second group spent around 75 to 150 minutes exercising per week, the third group spent 150 to 240 minutes on physical activity per week, and the fourth group spent over than 240 minutes on weekly exercise.

Results revealed that the group that didn’t exercise at all had the highest likelihood of becoming depressed or experiencing burnout. Meanwhile, those who exercised even for just a little bit reaped rewards. Workers who exercised for more than 240 minutes per week had little risk of getting depressed or burned out.

Aside from helping to keep you fit, physical activity does have a few other important merits, especially for busy career women. You don’t have to work out for more than 240 minutes (four hours) per week, but you can at least devote an hour or two weekly to keep your mental and emotional health in good condition.


Need ideas for exercise? Check these out:

• Making Your Program Work: 5 Tips on Sticking to Your Workout Routine
• 10 Fun Ways to Get Fit in the New Year
• Not Your Average Workout: 5 Cool Ways to Get Fit
• Strike a Pose: Amp up Your Fitness Routine with Fly Yoga
• At the Starting Line: 5 Tips for Starting a Running Regimen

To prevent yourself from suffering from burnout, try these tips:

• Burnout Busters: 8 Stress-Relief Techniques for Career Women
• Bye-Bye, Burnout: Schedule Your Downtime for Better Work-Life Balance
• The Stress Files: 10 Most Common Reasons for Fatigue
• Burnout Busters: 3 Tips to Avoid Working Yourself to Exhaustion

(Photo by Joint Base Lewis McChord via Flickr Creative Commons)