Is exercise effective for PPD?

There’s some evidence that aerobic exercise may help to prevent or treat PPD. A 2019 review of exercise-based interventions for PPD prevention and treatment found that there was low-quality evidence for a small-to-moderate reduction of PPD symptoms. Most of the included studies focused on aerobic exercise/coaching.^[1] A 2022 meta-analysis also found a small but significant antidepressant effect for exercise in PPD, which was stronger for exercise programs delivering 150 or more minutes of aerobic exercise per week.^[2] Simply walking may also be effective: another 2022 meta-analysis looked at 5 studies and concluded that moderate-intensity walking, particularly for 90–120 minutes/week, may help reduce symptoms of PPD.^[3]