The dynamics between physical activity and mood: investigating potential mechanisms and predictive pathways

Authors: Janna Vrijsen
Affiliation(s): Radboudumc
Keywords: physical activity, mood, emotional memory, individual dynamics

Research question(s):

1. Is physical activity associated with positive mood, and does emotional memory mediate this relationship? Here we aim to replicate earlier findings based on the first release of HBS data
2. (primary): Can a predictive model, based on physical activity levels from the first ActivPal+EMA week, accurately forecast an individual’s mood (positive affect) in the second and third EMA weeks?
3. (exploratory): How do baseline levels of BDNF and endocannabinoids impact the
   overall associations between physical activity, mood, and emotional memory?

Abstract:

Physical activity is widely recognized for improving mood and alleviating symptoms of mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, and stress (1,2). However, not everyone experiences mood enhancements from exercise, and the mechanisms behind this are unclear. This study aims to identify who benefits most from physical activity, exploring the links between physical activity, mood, emotional memory, and biomarkers in a healthy population.
We define physical activity as continuous movement (e.g., steps, cycling) and exercise bouts (combining movement and heart rate data). First, we will replicate previous findings from a sub-sample of the HBS data (3) by examining whether more physical activity is associated with improved positive mood. We will then explore  whether we can develop a model to predict an individual’s mood in subsequent weeks during the year based on
intra-individual variability in the relationship between physical activity and mood during the first week.

Second, we will investigate how physical activity influences mood, hypothesizing that exercise enhances emotional memory processing (4), promoting more positive appraisals of past emotional events. We found this relationship in the first part of the HBS data, and will try to replicate this finding in the second part of the data.

Finally, we will examine whether neural plasticity biomarkers like brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and endocannabinoids (eCB) levels influence the relationship between physical activity and mood. Although studies have indicated associations between neural plasticity biomarkers and mood improvements, these findings are mixed and based on widely different samples (e.g., mentally affected, healthy) and generally rather small sample sizes (5,6,7). Therefore, we will examine the relationships between neuroplasticity biomarkers, emotional memory, physical activity, and mood to gain further insight into possible mechanism of the mood-enhancing effect of physical activity.

Our findings may improve understanding of how exercise enhances mood and inform personalized interventions to optimize mental and cognitive health.