Money can’t compete with exercise, when it’s about making people happy, Yale and Oxford scholars concluded. In the study of 1.2 million Americans across all 50 states in the USA, it was discovered that being active is more beneficial to feeling content with life than earning big bucks.

Exercise is better than money for mental wellbeing

People who are exercising 3-5 times a week for 30-60 minutes a day are spending 18 days less feeling bad, as compared to the ones who are not active, The Lancet reported.

Any activity helps to improve one’s mental wellbeing, including doing chores around the house or dancing salsa, but team sports along with cycling, aerobics, and going to gym were found the most beneficial.

75 types of various activities were included, from weight-lifting to childcare and lawn-moving.

Instead of feeling upset for 35 days a year, active participants were moody for only 18 days annually.

However, exercising a lot doesn’t make you happier. People who spend over 3 hours doing sports weren’t merrier. In fact, they were more grumpy than the ones who didn’t exercise at all.

In other words, the connection between being active and happiness is U-shaped: an ideal amount of activities per day makes you the happiest, anything less or more will result in the raise of sad feelings.

“Previously, people have believed that the more exercise you do, the better your mental health, but our study suggests that this is not the case. Doing exercise more than 23 times a month, or exercising for longer than 90 minute sessions is associated with worse mental health,” Dr Chekroud, one of the authors of the research, concluded.

Hiking, skiing, or even housework have been found effective in lifting moods. Money can’t buy you happiness, but it allows you to buy sporting equipment.

45 minutes 3-5 times a week is all you need to boost your mood

We reported previously that physical activity was named the “magic pill” of healthy and long life. In fact, a pill that would produce such outcomes would make its inventors billionaires.

The research of Yale and Oxford group demonstrated that people can feel joyful without earning big bucks.

• In fact, the active group had 43% fewer moody days than the ones that didn’t exercise.
• Other factors that help to feel happier: college education (18% reduction in moody days); earning over USD 50,000 as compared to less than USD 15,000 (17%); normal weight vs. obesity (4%).

A large group of researchers joined efforts in the study, including Ralitza Gueorguieva, Amanda Zheutlin, Martin Paulus, Harlan Krumholz, John Krystal, and others. The work titled ‘Association between physical exercise and mental health in 1·2 million individuals in the USA between 2011 and 2015: a cross-sectional study’ was published in The Lancet.

So, if you would like to be happier, marrying a bride from Ukraine may not be the only thing that will bring a sunnier disposition with surety. Love makes us the happiest, but being fit and active is what each of us can do any day.

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