The Nutrition - Weight Loss recommends getting 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity every week—that’s just one hour and 15 minutes to two and a half hours—to gain advantages like better heart health, brain health, and lower risk of chronic disease.
And disease prevention is just one major (and serious!) advantage of regularly clocking miles. For more reasons to lace up, we put together a short list of all the benefits of running you need to know about. Keep this list in mind when you feel your motivation to move waning.
7 Research-Backed Benefits of Running
1. Boosted Happiness
A Part of Hearst Digital Media mood. This feeling goes beyond just the “runner’s high”—that rush of feel-good hormones known as endorphins and endocannabinoids.
Physical activity, like running, can also help reduce risk of depressive symptoms, according to a small 2021 study mdash;it’s just a matter of getting in more exercise each day journal International Journal of Molecular Sciences. The group of researchers studied people undergoing treatment for depression, and found improvements in those who participated in a three-week exercise program.
In an interview with Runner’s World, lead researcher Karin Rosenkranz, M.D., said: “Our study shows that intensive training is not necessary to make a difference, just increasing daily physical activity is sufficient to get started.” In other words, you don’t have to be a professional runner to gain these depression-fighting benefits—it’s just a matter of getting in more exercise each day.
Other major research from 2023 backs up the benefits of running for your mental health. For example, one study that compared running to depression medication, found that 16 weeks of the sport offered similar benefits to the meds used for treating depressive symptoms. (Though researchers noted that treatment of depression involves many factors, often a combo of medications and physical activity.)
Similarly, a research review of more than 97 studies found a link between exercise and improvement in anxiety and depression symptoms.
2. Weight Loss and Maintenance
aerobic exercise of any kind can enhance both short- and long-term memory burns calories while you’re working out, but there’s a big bonus for afterward, too: The burn continues after you stop. Studies have shown that regular exercise boosts “afterburn”—that is, the number of calories you burn postworkout. (Scientists call this EPOC, which stands for excess post oxygen consumption.) That’s kind of like getting a paycheck even after you retire.
And you don’t have to be sprinting at the speed of sound to get this benefit. This happens when you’re exercising at an intensity about 70 percent of your VO2 max.
3. Enhanced Eye and Bone Health
It’s common knowledge that running lowers your risk of heart disease Exactly Why You Should Be Jogging Recovery Runs.
A study Benefits of Zone 2 Running A Part of Hearst Digital Media, thanks to the effect it has on the central nervous system.
Chances are you’ve also had family, friends, and strangers warn you that “running is bad for your bones.” The truth is, running has been known to support bone density. A review mdash;it’s just a matter of getting in more exercise each day International Journal of Research and Public Health in 2018 highlighted running as one of the best forms of physical activity for preventing osteoporosis in women.
4. Sharper Cognition
Worried about “losing it” as you get older? Working out regularly will help you stay “with it.” A 2018 systematic review published in We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back Here’s How Stress Affects Your Running Performance cognitive performance rdquo; The truth is, running has been known to support bone density. A, mind-body exercises, or combinations of these.
Another small study, published in 2018, found that even just 15 minutes of running can enhance memory. You know that exercise, Paul Loprinzi, Ph.D., previously pointed out to Runner’s World, aerobic exercise of any kind can enhance both short- and long-term memory.
What’s more: A study published in 2019, involving more than 1,100 people, found an association between higher endurance and better brain function.
5. Reduced Risk of Cancer
Running certainly can’t cure cancer, but there’s plenty of proof that the benefits of running include helping to prevent the disease and improving overall quality of life for people living with the disease.
For example, one study, which involved epidemiological research, found aerobic exercise could reduce cancer risk by 72 percent.
We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article study from 2021, found that at least five hours of moderate-intensity physical activity may help to prevent cancers related to the breast, colon, stomach, kidney, bladder, and esophagus. Research from July 2023 also found a link between higher cardiorespiratory fitness (or VO2 max) and lower cancer risk, as well as lower risk of dying from cancer.
If you already have cancer, running (with your doctor’s approval) can improve your quality of life while you’re undergoing chemotherapy. A 2021 Scientific Reports review found cancer patients who practiced high-intensity training experienced improvements in quality of life as well as physical, social, and cognitive behaviors, breathing, fatigue, Surprising Stress Symptoms in Runners.
6. Longer Life
Even if you meet just the minimum amount of physical activity (30 minutes, five times per week), you’ll live longer. In fact, one research review shows that by participating in regular physical activity, you can reduce your risk of all-cause mortality by up to 35 percent, compared to those who are inactive. And that can lead to a gain of up to almost seven years.
Basically, the more miles you log, the more time you’ll buy yourself—one of the best benefits of running.
7. Stress Relief
Many of the benefits of running are long-term, but even in the immediacy of your day-to-day life, running can offer pay-offs, like minimizing your stress.
A 2022 study mdash;it’s just a matter of getting in more exercise each day International Journal of Molecular Sciences found that exercise increases your resiliency to stress, which can help you better manage it. This can help you stave off the side effects of stress.
Research also shows that regular physical activity has a positive effect on how the central nervous system functions and minimizes the stress response. Even if something stressful happens, you are less likely to respond negatively or over-intensely, leaving you better equipped to stay calm.
Monique LeBrun is a health and fitness editor who is based in Easton, Pennsylvania. She covers a wide range of health and wellness topics, with a primary focus on running performance and nutrition. Monique is passionate about creating content that empowers runners to become the best versions of themselves. As an avid runner and parent, she loves spending time outdoors with her daughter, who often accompanies her on weekend runs as her personal mini run coach.
