Daniel López Rosetti: “Movement is not only physical health, it is also treatment”

Daniel López Rosetti describes exercise as more than a way to protect the body. For people dealing with depression, stress or emotional exhaustion, he presents movement as part of the treatment itself.

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Between one and two months. Published studies show that the benefit is not immediate, but for someone with depression it is almost immediate: benefits can be noticed between four and eight weeks.

The cardiologist said the benefits do not appear immediately because the brain needs time to adapt biologically. Published studies indicate that people with depression may begin to notice improvement after four to eight weeks, he said.

Rosetti said both aerobic exercise and strength training can help. Walking, brisk walking, jogging and weightlifting produce comparable psychological benefits when used in depression treatment. The distinction between cardiovascular endurance and muscle-building activity does not mean one is useful while the other is not.

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Published studies discuss aerobic physical activity, such as walking, brisk walking and jogging, and weights, meaning resistance or strength training. They have the same effect as aerobic exercise in treating depression.

He cited the World Health Organization’s usual recommendation of 150 minutes of aerobic exercise each week. In practical terms, that could mean walking briskly for 30 minutes, five days a week. He also recommended muscle-strengthening activity to maintain and increase muscle tone, describing that routine as part of the medication’s dose.

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The dose is the one usually indicated by the World Health Organization for aerobic exercise: reaching 150 minutes of brisk walking per week.

The specialist distinguished clinical depression from the low mood that can accompany daily frustration and stress. Modern life increasingly produces sadness, loss of enjoyment and an emotionally dulled state, he said. In those situations, the response to physical activity can be faster, although the article does not provide a specific timeframe for that improvement.

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It is true that in the days we live in, a depressed mood caused by frustrations, emotional experiences and stress is increasingly common.