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Best strength exercises for mood, stress and sleep: 7 moves and a sample week

Lifting won't fix a hard life. But in trials it eased low mood, took the edge off anxiety and helped people sleep better. Short sessions. Keep 1 to 3 reps in reserve.

By Susmit Jalan, coach at Online Fitness Worldwide.

Long day. Head full. You sleep badly, and the next day feels heavier. Plenty of people start strength training for their body and keep going for how it makes their head feel.

WHO lists fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression, and better sleep, among the benefits of regular physical activity for adults, and advises muscle-strengthening work on 2 or more days a week.[1] The NHS says regular exercise can boost your mood if you have depression, and is especially useful for less severe depression.[2]

A meta-analysis of 33 randomised trials with 1,877 adults found that resistance training reduced depressive symptoms, with a moderate average effect. It helped healthy people and people with an illness, whatever the total volume. Trials with blinded assessment showed smaller effects.[4]

For anxiety, 16 trials with 922 people found a smaller but real reduction, larger in healthy people than in people with an illness.[5] A 2024 BMJ network meta-analysis of 218 trials found strength training among the more effective exercise types for depression, and one of the best tolerated. Confidence in that evidence was rated low to very low.[6]

For sleep, a systematic review of 13 trials found that regular resistance training improved self-reported sleep, most of all sleep quality. None of the trials of regular training measured sleep objectively.[7]

This is coaching, not treatment. Exercise can sit alongside therapy and medicine; it does not replace them. Read "Before you start".

See also: Best strength exercises for busy parents: 7 moves and a sample week · Best strength exercises for desk neck and shoulders: 7 moves and a sample week

The 7 best strength exercises for mood, stress and sleep

  1. Goblet squat to a chair

    Why
    Big muscles, real effort, a simple pattern. The trials mostly used whole-body programmes of moves like this, most often 3 days a week.[4]
    How
    Hold a dumbbell, a water bottle or a filled backpack at your chest. Feet a little wider than your hips. Sit back and down until you touch the chair, then stand. Too much? No weight, a higher chair. Easy? Pause just above the seat.
    Dose
    2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

  2. Incline push-up

    Why
    A push you can scale to any level, so you finish the set feeling capable, not crushed.
    How
    Hands on a counter or a sturdy table, body in one line from head to heels. Lower your chest to the edge, then push away. Too much? A higher surface, or the wall. Easy? A lower surface, then the floor.
    Dose
    2 to 3 sets of 6 to 12. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

  3. One-arm row

    Why
    It balances the pushing and works the upper back, which long desk days leave quiet.
    How
    One hand and knee on a bench or sturdy chair, back flat. Pull a dumbbell or backpack up towards your hip, elbow close. Lower slowly. Too much? A lighter load, or a band. Easy? Heavier, with a two-second pause at the top.
    Dose
    2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 each side. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

  4. Glute bridge

    Why
    A floor move with little skill to learn. Good for the days when energy is low and you still want to do something.
    How
    Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat. Breathe out and press through your heels until your body is in a line from knees to shoulders. Lower slowly. Easy? One leg at a time, or a weight across your hips.
    Dose
    2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

  5. Supported split squat

    Why
    One leg at a time needs your attention. Hard enough to focus on, simple enough to repeat every week.
    How
    Stand in a long stride, a hand on a wall or chair. Lower the back knee towards the floor, front heel down, then rise. Too much? A shorter range. Easy? Hold a weight in the other hand.
    Dose
    2 sets of 6 to 10 each leg. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

  6. Farmer's carry

    Why
    Simple, honest effort: pick it up, stand tall, walk, breathe.
    How
    Hold two shopping bags, dumbbells or water containers at your sides. Stand tall, shoulders down, and walk slowly with short steps. Set them down with a straight back. Too much? Lighter, or carry one at a time and switch hands each lap.
    Dose
    3 to 4 walks of 20 to 40 metres, or about 30 seconds. Pick a load you could carry a little longer; stop if your grip or posture goes.

  7. Dead bug with slow breathing

    Why
    A slow, controlled finish. It works the deep abdominal muscles and gives you a few minutes to bring your breathing down before you get on with the day.
    How
    Lie on your back, arms up, knees bent over your hips. Breathe out and slowly lower one arm and the opposite leg, low back staying gently on the floor. Return, then swap. Too much? Move only the legs, or only the arms.
    Dose
    2 sets of 6 to 10 slow reps each side, breathing out on each reach. Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.

How much, how hard, how often

WHO, for adults: 150 to 300 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a week, plus muscle-strengthening work for the major muscle groups on 2 or more days.[1] The NHS: if you haven't exercised for a while, start gradually and build up; even a brisk 10-minute walk can clear your mind.[2]

In the depression trials, programmes ran for 6 to 52 weeks, 16 on average, and 3 sessions a week was the most common pattern. Most were supervised. Total volume was not linked to the size of the effect, so more is not automatically better.[4]

The 2024 network meta-analysis found that effects grew with the intensity prescribed.[6] Here that means sets that feel genuinely hard but tidy: keep 1 to 3 reps in reserve. Failure is not the goal.

NICE recommends group exercise as one option for less severe depression: usually more than one session a week with a trained practitioner, for about 10 weeks.[3]

Strength progression: when you beat the top of the rep range by 1 or 2, add a little load, about 2 to 10%, or slow the lowering.[9]

Sleep: the review could not say which time of day is best.[7] Train when you can keep doing it. If late sessions leave you wired, move them earlier. That is a coaching call, not a research finding.

A sample week of strength training for mood and sleep

Sample only. Not a prescription. Adjust it with your doctor to your body, your medicines and your history.

  • Monday, about 30 minutes: goblet squat, incline push-up, one-arm row, dead bug. 2 to 3 sets of each.
  • Tuesday: a 20 to 30 minute walk outside, at a pace where you can still talk.
  • Wednesday, about 30 minutes: split squat, glute bridge, farmer's carry, dead bug.
  • Thursday: a walk, or rest.
  • Friday, about 30 minutes: repeat Monday.
  • Saturday: something you enjoy: a walk with someone, a sport, a class.
  • Sunday: rest.
  • Load cap for this sample week: weights you can move for 8 to 15 smooth reps. No maximal lifts, no training to failure, no session longer than about 45 minutes. A bad day? Do one round and call it a win.
  • Keep 1 to 3 good reps in reserve (RIR); stop before technique changes.
  • Pain check: mild discomfort that settles soon is fine. Pain that rises during a set means make it easier: less range or less load. Sharp pain, swelling, pain spreading down a limb, numbness, a joint giving way or locking means stop and get it checked. I'm a coach, not a physio or doctor.

Want it coached live?

Iron Hour is 60 minutes, 1:1. Set-up at minute 0: camera so I can see you from head to feet, a chair, a weight or a backpack. Warm-up from minute 4. Primary lifts at 14. Accessories at 28. Cool-down at 50, slow breathing included.

Lean Reset is 20 sessions a month, 1:1, if you want more frequent coached days. Return is 45 minutes, 1:1, 12 alternate-day sessions a month, if you haven't trained in years. Open Floor is a small group.

I'm a coach, not a doctor or therapist. If you are being treated for depression, anxiety or a sleep problem, keep your doctor or therapist in the loop. We train alongside that care, not instead of it.

Coached live on Google Meet, Zoom or FaceTime, in your own living room. In Hindi or English. On IST. Not sure yet? Start with a 30-minute consultation. It is a conversation, not a training session. Booking holds a time; the fee is agreed directly.

See the programsAsk on WhatsApp (opens in a new tab)

Before you start

General information, not medical advice. ACSM's screening model: if you are inactive, have no symptoms and no known heart, metabolic or kidney disease, you can start light to moderate exercise without medical clearance and build up gradually. If you have one of those conditions, or symptoms such as chest pain, unusual breathlessness or dizziness, get medical clearance first.[10] Exercise is not a replacement for treatment. NHS advice: if you have been feeling down for a while and do not feel like your usual self, see a GP; talking therapies and antidepressants are among the options.[2] Outside the UK, that means your doctor. Do not stop or change a prescribed medicine without your doctor. If you are thinking about harming yourself or ending your life, get help now: call your local emergency number (112 in India) or, in India, Tele-MANAS on 14416 or 1-800-891-4416, free and 24 hours a day.[8] Some medicines can make you light-headed when you stand: get up slowly after floor work. Stop for chest pain, unusual breathlessness, dizziness or faintness.

ASCA Level 1 (strength and conditioning) and ACE (anatomy and biomechanics). These are credentials held by the coach. Neither body endorses this business or this article.

Sources

  1. [1] World Health Organization. WHO guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Geneva: WHO; 2020. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240015128 (opens in a new tab)
  2. [2] NHS. Exercise for depression. nhs.uk. https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/guides-tools-and-activities/exercise-for-depression/ (opens in a new tab)
  3. [3] National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Depression in adults: treatment and management. NICE guideline NG222. 2022. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng222 (opens in a new tab)
  4. [4] Gordon BR, McDowell CP, Hallgren M, Meyer JD, Lyons M, Herring MP. Association of efficacy of resistance exercise training with depressive symptoms: meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis of randomized clinical trials. JAMA Psychiatry. 2018;75(6):566–576. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2018.0572 (opens in a new tab)
  5. [5] Gordon BR, McDowell CP, Lyons M, Herring MP. The effects of resistance exercise training on anxiety: a meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis of randomized controlled trials. Sports Med. 2017;47(12):2521–2532. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0769-0 (opens in a new tab)
  6. [6] Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, et al. Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. 2024;384:e075847. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-075847 (opens in a new tab)
  7. [7] Kovacevic A, Mavros Y, Heisz JJ, Fiatarone Singh MA. The effect of resistance exercise on sleep: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Sleep Med Rev. 2018;39:52–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2017.07.002 (opens in a new tab)
  8. [8] Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Tele MANAS: National Tele Mental Health Programme. Toll-free 14416 or 1-800-891-4416. https://telemanas.mohfw.gov.in/ (opens in a new tab)
  9. [9] American College of Sports Medicine. Position stand: Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687–708. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181915670 (opens in a new tab)
  10. [10] Riebe D, Franklin BA, Thompson PD, et al. Updating ACSM's recommendations for exercise preparticipation health screening. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2015;47(11):2473–2479. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000000664 (opens in a new tab)