thesis statement for exercise and health

Health Thesis Statemen

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Navigating the intricate landscape of health topics requires a well-structured thesis statement to anchor your essay. Whether delving into public health policies or examining medical advancements, crafting a compelling health thesis statement is crucial. This guide delves into exemplary health thesis statement examples, providing insights into their composition. Additionally, it offers practical tips on constructing powerful statements that not only capture the essence of your research but also engage readers from the outset.

What is the Health Thesis Statement? – Definition

A health thesis statement is a concise declaration that outlines the main argument or purpose of an essay or research paper thesis statement focused on health-related topics. It serves as a roadmap for the reader, indicating the central idea that the paper will explore, discuss, or analyze within the realm of health, medicine, wellness, or related fields.

What is an Example of a Medical/Health Thesis Statement?

Example: “The implementation of comprehensive public health campaigns is imperative in curbing the escalating rates of obesity and promoting healthier lifestyle choices among children and adolescents.”

In this example, the final thesis statement succinctly highlights the importance of public health initiatives as a means to address a specific health issue (obesity) and advocate for healthier behaviors among a targeted demographic (children and adolescents).

100 Health Thesis Statement Examples

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Discover a comprehensive collection of 100 distinct health thesis statement examples across various healthcare realms. From telemedicine’s impact on accessibility to genetic research’s potential for personalized medicine, delve into obesity, mental health, antibiotic resistance, opioid epidemic solutions, and more. Explore these examples that shed light on pressing health concerns, innovative strategies, and crucial policy considerations. You may also be interested to browse through our other  speech thesis statement .

• Childhood Obesity : “Effective school-based nutrition programs are pivotal in combating childhood obesity, fostering healthy habits, and reducing the risk of long-term health complications.”
• Mental Health Stigma : “Raising awareness through media campaigns and educational initiatives is paramount in eradicating mental health stigma, promoting early intervention, and improving overall well-being.”
• Universal Healthcare : “The implementation of universal healthcare systems positively impacts population health, ensuring access to necessary medical services for all citizens.”
• Elderly Care : “Creating comprehensive elderly care programs that encompass medical, social, and emotional support enhances the quality of life for aging populations.”
• Cancer Research : “Increased funding and collaboration in cancer research expedite advancements in treatment options and improve survival rates for patients.”
• Maternal Health : “Elevating maternal health through accessible prenatal care, education, and support systems reduces maternal mortality rates and improves neonatal outcomes.”
• Vaccination Policies : “Mandatory vaccination policies safeguard public health by curbing preventable diseases and maintaining herd immunity.”
• Epidemic Preparedness : “Developing robust epidemic preparedness plans and international cooperation mechanisms is crucial for timely responses to emerging health threats.”
• Access to Medications : “Ensuring equitable access to essential medications, especially in low-income regions, is pivotal for preventing unnecessary deaths and improving overall health outcomes.”
• Healthy Lifestyle Promotion : “Educational campaigns promoting exercise, balanced nutrition, and stress management play a key role in fostering healthier lifestyles and preventing chronic diseases.”
• Health Disparities : “Addressing health disparities through community-based interventions and equitable healthcare access contributes to a fairer distribution of health resources.”
• Elderly Mental Health : “Prioritizing mental health services for the elderly population reduces depression, anxiety, and cognitive decline, enhancing their overall quality of life.”
• Genetic Counseling : “Accessible genetic counseling services empower individuals to make informed decisions about their health, family planning, and potential genetic risks.”
• Substance Abuse Treatment : “Expanding availability and affordability of substance abuse treatment facilities and programs is pivotal in combating addiction and reducing its societal impact.”
• Patient Empowerment : “Empowering patients through health literacy initiatives fosters informed decision-making, improving treatment adherence and overall health outcomes.”
• Environmental Health : “Implementing stricter environmental regulations reduces exposure to pollutants, protecting public health and mitigating the risk of respiratory illnesses.”
• Digital Health Records : “The widespread adoption of digital health records streamlines patient information management, enhancing communication among healthcare providers and improving patient care.”
• Healthy Aging : “Promoting active lifestyles, social engagement, and cognitive stimulation among the elderly population contributes to healthier aging and reduced age-related health issues.”
• Telehealth Ethics : “Ethical considerations in telehealth services include patient privacy, data security, and maintaining the quality of remote medical consultations.”
• Public Health Campaigns : “Strategically designed public health campaigns raise awareness about prevalent health issues, motivating individuals to adopt healthier behaviors and seek preventive care.”
• Nutrition Education : “Integrating nutrition education into school curricula equips students with essential dietary knowledge, reducing the risk of nutrition-related health problems.”
• Healthcare Infrastructure : “Investments in healthcare infrastructure, including medical facilities and trained personnel, enhance healthcare access and quality, particularly in underserved regions.”
• Mental Health Support in Schools : “Introducing comprehensive mental health support systems in schools nurtures emotional well-being, reduces academic stress, and promotes healthy student development.”
• Antibiotic Stewardship : “Implementing antibiotic stewardship programs in healthcare facilities preserves the effectiveness of antibiotics, curbing the rise of antibiotic-resistant infections.”
• Health Education in Rural Areas : “Expanding health education initiatives in rural communities bridges the information gap, enabling residents to make informed health choices.”
• Global Health Initiatives : “International collaboration on global health initiatives bolsters disease surveillance, preparedness, and response to protect global populations from health threats.”
• Access to Clean Water : “Ensuring access to clean water and sanitation facilities improves public health by preventing waterborne diseases and enhancing overall hygiene.”
• Telemedicine and Mental Health : “Leveraging telemedicine for mental health services increases access to therapy and counseling, particularly for individuals in remote areas.”
• Chronic Disease Management : “Comprehensive chronic disease management programs enhance patients’ quality of life by providing personalized care plans and consistent medical support.”
• Healthcare Workforce Diversity : “Promoting diversity within the healthcare workforce enhances cultural competence, patient-provider communication, and overall healthcare quality.”
• Community Health Centers : “Establishing community health centers in underserved neighborhoods ensures accessible primary care services, reducing health disparities and emergency room utilization.”
• Youth Health Education : “Incorporating comprehensive health education in schools equips young people with knowledge about reproductive health, substance abuse prevention, and mental well-being.”
• Dietary Guidelines : “Implementing evidence-based dietary guidelines and promoting healthy eating habits contribute to reducing obesity rates and preventing chronic diseases.”
• Healthcare Innovation : “Investing in healthcare innovation, such as telemedicine platforms and wearable health technologies, transforms patient care delivery and monitoring.”
• Pandemic Preparedness : “Effective pandemic preparedness plans involve cross-sector coordination, rapid response strategies, and transparent communication to protect global health security.”
• Maternal and Child Nutrition : “Prioritizing maternal and child nutrition through government programs and community initiatives leads to healthier pregnancies and better child development.”
• Health Literacy : “Improving health literacy through accessible health information and education empowers individuals to make informed decisions about their well-being.”
• Medical Research Funding : “Increased funding for medical research accelerates scientific discoveries, leading to breakthroughs in treatments and advancements in healthcare.”
• Reproductive Health Services : “Accessible reproductive health services, including family planning and maternal care, improve women’s health outcomes and support family well-being.”
• Obesity Prevention in Schools : “Introducing physical activity programs and nutritional education in schools prevents childhood obesity, laying the foundation for healthier lifestyles.”
• Global Vaccine Distribution : “Ensuring equitable global vaccine distribution addresses health disparities, protects vulnerable populations, and fosters international cooperation.”
• Healthcare Ethics : “Ethical considerations in healthcare decision-making encompass patient autonomy, informed consent, and equitable resource allocation.”
• Aging-in-Place Initiatives : “Aging-in-place programs that provide home modifications and community support enable elderly individuals to maintain independence and well-being.”
• E-Health Records Privacy : “Balancing the benefits of electronic health records with patients’ privacy concerns necessitates robust data security measures and patient consent protocols.”
• Tobacco Control : “Comprehensive tobacco control measures, including high taxation and anti-smoking campaigns, reduce tobacco consumption and related health risks.”
• Epidemiological Studies : “Conducting rigorous epidemiological studies informs public health policies, identifies risk factors, and guides disease prevention strategies.”
• Organ Transplant Policies : “Ethical organ transplant policies prioritize equitable organ allocation, ensuring fair access to life-saving treatments.”
• Workplace Wellness Programs : “Implementing workplace wellness programs promotes employee health, reduces absenteeism, and enhances productivity.”
• Emergency Medical Services : “Strengthening emergency medical services infrastructure ensures timely responses to medical crises, saving lives and reducing complications.”
• Healthcare Access for Undocumented Immigrants : “Expanding healthcare access for undocumented immigrants improves overall community health and prevents communicable disease outbreaks.”
• Primary Care Shortage Solutions : “Addressing primary care shortages through incentives for healthcare professionals and expanded training programs enhances access to basic medical services.”
• Patient-Centered Care : “Prioritizing patient-centered care emphasizes communication, shared decision-making, and respecting patients’ preferences in medical treatments.”
• Nutrition Labels Impact : “The effectiveness of clear and informative nutrition labels on packaged foods contributes to healthier dietary choices and reduced obesity rates.”
• Stress Management Strategies : “Promoting stress management techniques, such as mindfulness and relaxation, improves mental health and reduces the risk of stress-related illnesses.”
• Access to Reproductive Health Education : “Ensuring access to comprehensive reproductive health education empowers individuals to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive well-being.”
• Medical Waste Management : “Effective medical waste management practices protect both public health and the environment by preventing contamination and pollution.”
• Preventive Dental Care : “Prioritizing preventive dental care through community programs and education reduces oral health issues and associated healthcare costs.”
• Pharmaceutical Pricing Reform : “Addressing pharmaceutical pricing reform enhances medication affordability and ensures access to life-saving treatments for all.”
• Community Health Worker Role : “Empowering community health workers to provide education, support, and basic medical services improves healthcare access in underserved areas.”
• Healthcare Technology Adoption : “Adopting innovative healthcare technologies, such as AI-assisted diagnostics, enhances accuracy, efficiency, and patient outcomes in medical practices.”
• Elderly Falls Prevention : “Implementing falls prevention programs for the elderly population reduces injuries, hospitalizations, and healthcare costs, enhancing their overall well-being.”
• Healthcare Data Privacy Laws : “Stricter healthcare data privacy laws protect patients’ sensitive information, maintaining their trust and promoting transparent data management practices.”
• School Health Clinics : “Establishing health clinics in schools provides easy access to medical services for students, promoting early detection and timely treatment of health issues.”
• Healthcare Cultural Competence : “Cultivating cultural competence among healthcare professionals improves patient-provider communication, enhances trust, and reduces healthcare disparities.”
• Health Equity in Clinical Trials : “Ensuring health equity in clinical trials by diverse participant representation enhances the generalizability of research findings to different populations.”
• Digital Mental Health Interventions : “Utilizing digital mental health interventions, such as therapy apps, expands access to mental health services and reduces stigma surrounding seeking help.”
• Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases : “Exploring the connection between aging and neurodegenerative diseases informs early interventions and treatment strategies to mitigate cognitive decline.”
• Healthcare Waste Reduction : “Implementing sustainable healthcare waste reduction measures decreases environmental impact and contributes to a greener healthcare industry.”
• Medical Ethics in End-of-Life Care : “Ethical considerations in end-of-life care decision-making ensure patient autonomy, quality of life, and respectful treatment choices.”
• Healthcare Interoperability : “Enhancing healthcare data interoperability between different medical systems and providers improves patient care coordination and information sharing.”
• Healthcare Disparities in Indigenous Communities : “Addressing healthcare disparities in Indigenous communities through culturally sensitive care and community engagement improves health outcomes.”
• Music Therapy in Healthcare : “Exploring the role of music therapy in healthcare settings reveals its positive effects on reducing pain, anxiety, and enhancing emotional well-being.”
• Healthcare Waste Management Policies : “Effective healthcare waste management policies regulate the disposal of medical waste, protecting both public health and the environment.”
• Agricultural Practices and Public Health : “Analyzing the impact of agricultural practices on public health highlights the connections between food production, environmental health, and nutrition.”
• Online Health Information Reliability : “Promoting the reliability of online health information through credible sources and fact-checking guides empowers individuals to make informed health decisions.”
• Neonatal Intensive Care : “Advancements in neonatal intensive care technology enhance premature infants’ chances of survival and long-term health.”
• Fitness Technology : “The integration of fitness technology in daily routines motivates individuals to engage in physical activity, promoting better cardiovascular health.”
• Climate Change and Health : “Examining the health effects of climate change emphasizes the need for mitigation strategies to protect communities from heat-related illnesses, vector-borne diseases, and other climate-related health risks.”
• Healthcare Cybersecurity : “Robust cybersecurity measures in healthcare systems safeguard patient data and protect against cyberattacks that can compromise medical records.”
• Healthcare Quality Metrics : “Evaluating healthcare quality through metrics such as patient satisfaction, outcomes, and safety indicators informs continuous improvement efforts in medical facilities.”
• Maternal Health Disparities : “Addressing maternal health disparities among different racial and socioeconomic groups through accessible prenatal care and support reduces maternal mortality rates.”
• Disaster Preparedness : “Effective disaster preparedness plans in healthcare facilities ensure timely responses during emergencies, minimizing casualties and maintaining patient care.”
• Sleep Health : “Promoting sleep health education emphasizes the importance of quality sleep in overall well-being, preventing sleep-related disorders and associated health issues.”
• Healthcare AI Ethics : “Navigating the ethical implications of using artificial intelligence in healthcare, such as diagnosis algorithms, safeguards patient privacy and accuracy.”
• Pediatric Nutrition : “Prioritizing pediatric nutrition education encourages healthy eating habits from a young age, reducing the risk of childhood obesity and related health concerns.”
• Mental Health in First Responders : “Providing mental health support for first responders acknowledges the psychological toll of their work, preventing burnout and trauma-related issues.”
• Healthcare Workforce Burnout : “Addressing healthcare workforce burnout through organizational support, manageable workloads, and mental health resources improves patient care quality.”
• Vaccine Hesitancy : “Effective strategies to address vaccine hesitancy involve transparent communication, education, and addressing concerns to maintain vaccination rates and community immunity.”
• Climate-Resilient Healthcare Facilities : “Designing climate-resilient healthcare facilities prepares medical centers to withstand extreme weather events and ensure continuous patient care.”
• Nutrition in Aging : “Emphasizing balanced nutrition among the elderly population supports healthy aging, preventing malnutrition-related health complications.”
• Medication Adherence Strategies : “Implementing medication adherence strategies, such as reminder systems and simplified regimens, improves treatment outcomes and reduces hospitalizations.”
• Crisis Intervention : “Effective crisis intervention strategies in mental health care prevent escalations, promote de-escalation techniques, and improve patient safety.”
• Healthcare Waste Recycling : “Promoting healthcare waste recycling initiatives reduces landfill waste, conserves resources, and minimizes the environmental impact of medical facilities.”
• Healthcare Financial Accessibility : “Strategies to enhance healthcare financial accessibility, such as sliding scale fees and insurance coverage expansion, ensure equitable care for all.”
• Palliative Care : “Prioritizing palliative care services improves patients’ quality of life by addressing pain management, symptom relief, and emotional support.”
• Healthcare and Artificial Intelligence : “Exploring the integration of artificial intelligence in diagnostics and treatment planning enhances medical accuracy and reduces human error.”
• Personalized Medicine : “Advancements in personalized medicine tailor treatments based on individual genetics and characteristics, leading to more precise and effective healthcare.”
• Patient Advocacy : “Empowering patients through education and advocacy training enables them to navigate the healthcare system and actively participate in their treatment decisions.”
• Healthcare Waste Reduction : “Promoting the reduction of healthcare waste through sustainable practices and responsible disposal methods minimizes environmental and health risks.”
• Complementary and Alternative Medicine : “Examining the efficacy and safety of complementary and alternative medicine approaches provides insights into their potential role in enhancing overall health and well-being.”

Thesis Statement Examples for Physical Health

Discover 10 unique good thesis statement examples that delve into physical health, from the impact of fitness technology on exercise motivation to the importance of nutrition education in preventing chronic illnesses. Explore these examples shedding light on the pivotal role of physical well-being in disease prevention and overall quality of life.

• Fitness Technology’s Influence : “The integration of fitness technology like wearable devices enhances physical health by fostering exercise adherence, tracking progress, and promoting active lifestyles.”
• Nutrition Education’s Role : “Incorporating comprehensive nutrition education in schools equips students with essential dietary knowledge, reducing the risk of nutrition-related health issues.”
• Active Lifestyle Promotion : “Public spaces and urban planning strategies that encourage physical activity contribute to community health and well-being, reducing sedentary behavior.”
• Sports Injuries Prevention : “Strategic implementation of sports injury prevention programs and adequate athlete conditioning minimizes the incidence of sports-related injuries, preserving physical well-being.”
• Physical Health in Workplace : “Prioritizing ergonomic design and promoting workplace physical activity positively impact employees’ physical health, reducing musculoskeletal issues and stress-related ailments.”
• Childhood Obesity Mitigation : “School-based interventions, including physical education and health education, play a pivotal role in mitigating childhood obesity and promoting lifelong physical health.”
• Outdoor Activity and Wellness : “Unstructured outdoor play, especially in natural settings, fosters children’s physical health, cognitive development, and emotional well-being.”
• Senior Nutrition and Mobility : “Tailored nutrition plans and physical activity interventions for seniors support physical health, mobility, and independence during the aging process.”
• Health Benefits of Active Commuting : “Promotion of active commuting modes such as walking and cycling improves cardiovascular health, reduces pollution, and enhances overall well-being.”
• Physical Health’s Longevity Impact : “Sustaining physical health through regular exercise, balanced nutrition, and preventive measures positively influences longevity, ensuring a higher quality of life.”

Thesis Statement Examples for Health Protocols

Explore 10 thesis statement examples that highlight the significance of health protocols, encompassing infection control in medical settings to the ethical guidelines for telemedicine practices. These examples underscore the pivotal role of health protocols in ensuring patient safety, maintaining effective healthcare practices, and preventing the spread of illnesses across various contexts.  You should also take a look at our  thesis statement for report .

• Infection Control and Patient Safety : “Rigorous infection control protocols in healthcare settings are paramount to patient safety, curbing healthcare-associated infections and maintaining quality care standards.”
• Evidence-Based Treatment Guidelines : “Adhering to evidence-based treatment guidelines enhances medical decision-making, improves patient outcomes, and promotes standardized, effective healthcare practices.”
• Ethics in Telemedicine : “Establishing ethical guidelines for telemedicine practices is crucial to ensure patient confidentiality, quality of care, and responsible remote medical consultations.”
• Emergency Response Preparedness : “Effective emergency response protocols in healthcare facilities ensure timely and coordinated actions, optimizing patient care, and minimizing potential harm.”
• Clinical Trial Integrity : “Stringent adherence to health protocols in clinical trials preserves data integrity, ensures participant safety, and upholds ethical principles in medical research.”
• Safety in Daycare Settings : “Implementing robust infection prevention protocols in daycare settings is vital to curb disease transmission, safeguarding the health of children and staff.”
• Privacy and E-Health : “Upholding stringent patient privacy protocols in electronic health records is paramount for data security, fostering trust, and maintaining confidentiality.”
• Hand Hygiene and Infection Prevention : “Promoting proper hand hygiene protocols among healthcare providers significantly reduces infection transmission risks, protecting both patients and medical personnel.”
• Food Safety in Restaurants : “Strict adherence to comprehensive food safety protocols within the restaurant industry is essential to prevent foodborne illnesses and ensure public health.”
• Pandemic Preparedness and Response : “Developing robust pandemic preparedness protocols, encompassing risk assessment and response strategies, is essential to effectively manage disease outbreaks and protect public health.”

Thesis Statement Examples on Health Benefits

Uncover 10 illuminating thesis statement examples exploring the diverse spectrum of health benefits, from the positive impact of green spaces on mental well-being to the advantages of mindfulness practices in stress reduction. Delve into these examples that underscore the profound influence of health-promoting activities on overall physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

• Nature’s Impact on Mental Health : “The presence of green spaces in urban environments positively influences mental health by reducing stress, enhancing mood, and fostering relaxation.”
• Mindfulness for Stress Reduction : “Incorporating mindfulness practices into daily routines promotes mental clarity, reduces stress, and improves overall emotional well-being.”
• Social Interaction’s Role : “Engaging in regular social interactions and fostering strong social connections contributes to mental well-being, combating feelings of loneliness and isolation.”
• Physical Activity’s Cognitive Benefits : “Participation in regular physical activity enhances cognitive function, memory retention, and overall brain health, promoting lifelong mental well-being.”
• Positive Effects of Laughter : “Laughter’s physiological and psychological benefits, including stress reduction and improved mood, have a direct impact on overall mental well-being.”
• Nutrition’s Impact on Mood : “Balanced nutrition and consumption of mood-enhancing nutrients play a pivotal role in regulating mood and promoting positive mental health.”
• Creative Expression and Emotional Well-Being : “Engaging in creative activities, such as art and music, provides an outlet for emotional expression and fosters psychological well-being.”
• Cultural Engagement’s Influence : “Participating in cultural and artistic activities enriches emotional well-being, promoting a sense of identity, belonging, and purpose.”
• Volunteering and Mental Health : “Volunteering contributes to improved mental well-being by fostering a sense of purpose, social connection, and positive self-esteem.”
• Emotional Benefits of Pet Ownership : “The companionship of pets provides emotional support, reduces stress, and positively impacts overall mental well-being.”

Thesis Statement Examples on Mental Health

Explore 10 thought-provoking thesis statement examples delving into various facets of mental health, from addressing stigma surrounding mental illnesses to advocating for increased mental health support in schools. These examples shed light on the importance of understanding, promoting, and prioritizing mental health to achieve holistic well-being.

• Stigma Reduction for Mental Health : “Challenging societal stigma surrounding mental health encourages open dialogue, fostering acceptance, and creating a supportive environment for individuals seeking help.”
• Mental Health Education in Schools : “Incorporating comprehensive mental health education in school curricula equips students with emotional coping skills, destigmatizes mental health discussions, and supports overall well-being.”
• Mental Health Awareness Campaigns : “Strategically designed mental health awareness campaigns raise public consciousness, reduce stigma, and promote early intervention and access to support.”
• Workplace Mental Health Initiatives : “Implementing workplace mental health programs, including stress management and emotional support, enhances employee well-being and job satisfaction.”
• Digital Mental Health Interventions : “Leveraging digital platforms for mental health interventions, such as therapy apps and online support groups, increases accessibility and reduces barriers to seeking help.”
• Impact of Social Media on Mental Health : “Examining the influence of social media on mental health highlights both positive and negative effects, guiding responsible usage and promoting well-being.”
• Mental Health Disparities : “Addressing mental health disparities among different demographics through culturally sensitive care and accessible services is crucial for equitable well-being.”
• Trauma-Informed Care : “Adopting trauma-informed care approaches in mental health settings acknowledges the impact of past trauma, ensuring respectful and effective treatment.”
• Positive Psychology Interventions : “Incorporating positive psychology interventions, such as gratitude practices and resilience training, enhances mental well-being and emotional resilience.”
• Mental Health Support for First Responders : “Recognizing the unique mental health challenges faced by first responders and providing tailored support services is essential for maintaining their well-being.”

Thesis Statement Examples on Covid-19

Explore 10 illuminating thesis statement examples focusing on various aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic, from the impact on mental health to the role of public health measures. Delve into these examples that highlight the interdisciplinary nature of addressing the pandemic’s challenges and implications on global health.

• Mental Health Crisis Amid Covid-19 : “The Covid-19 pandemic’s psychological toll underscores the urgency of implementing mental health support services and destigmatizing seeking help.”
• Role of Public Health Measures : “Analyzing the effectiveness of public health measures, including lockdowns and vaccination campaigns, in curbing the spread of Covid-19 highlights their pivotal role in pandemic control.”
• Equitable Access to Vaccines : “Ensuring equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines globally is vital to achieving widespread immunity, preventing new variants, and ending the pandemic.”
• Online Education’s Impact : “Exploring the challenges and opportunities of online education during the Covid-19 pandemic provides insights into its effects on students’ academic progress and mental well-being.”
• Economic Implications and Mental Health : “Investigating the economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic on mental health highlights the need for comprehensive social support systems and mental health resources.”
• Crisis Communication Strategies : “Evaluating effective crisis communication strategies during the Covid-19 pandemic underscores the importance of transparent information dissemination, fostering public trust.”
• Long-Term Health Effects : “Understanding the potential long-term health effects of Covid-19 on recovered individuals guides healthcare planning and underscores the importance of ongoing monitoring.”
• Digital Health Solutions : “Leveraging digital health solutions, such as telemedicine and contact tracing apps, plays a pivotal role in tracking and managing Covid-19 transmission.”
• Resilience Amid Adversity : “Exploring individual and community resilience strategies during the Covid-19 pandemic sheds light on coping mechanisms and adaptive behaviors in times of crisis.”
• Global Cooperation in Pandemic Response : “Assessing global cooperation and collaboration in pandemic response highlights the significance of international solidarity and coordination in managing global health crises.”

Nursing Thesis Statement Examples

Explore 10 insightful thesis statement examples that delve into the dynamic realm of nursing, from advocating for improved nurse-patient communication to addressing challenges in healthcare staffing. These examples emphasize the critical role of nursing professionals in patient care, healthcare systems, and the continuous pursuit of excellence in the field.

• Nurse-Patient Communication Enhancement : “Elevating nurse-patient communication through effective communication training programs improves patient satisfaction, treatment adherence, and overall healthcare outcomes.”
• Nursing Leadership Impact : “Empowering nursing leadership in healthcare institutions fosters improved patient care, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the cultivation of a positive work environment.”
• Challenges in Nursing Shortages : “Addressing nursing shortages through recruitment strategies, retention programs, and educational support enhances patient safety and healthcare system stability.”
• Evidence-Based Nursing Practices : “Promoting evidence-based nursing practices enhances patient care quality, ensuring that interventions are rooted in current research and best practices.”
• Nursing Role in Preventive Care : “Harnessing the nursing profession’s expertise in preventive care and patient education reduces disease burden and healthcare costs, emphasizing a proactive approach.”
• Nursing Advocacy and Patient Rights : “Nurse advocacy for patients’ rights and informed decision-making ensures ethical treatment, patient autonomy, and respectful healthcare experiences.”
• Nursing Ethics and Dilemmas : “Navigating ethical dilemmas in nursing, such as end-of-life care decisions, highlights the importance of ethical frameworks and interdisciplinary collaboration.”
• Telehealth Nursing Adaptation : “Adapting nursing practices to telehealth platforms requires specialized training and protocols to ensure safe, effective, and patient-centered remote care.”
• Nurse Educators’ Impact : “Nurse educators play a pivotal role in shaping the future of nursing by providing comprehensive education, fostering critical thinking, and promoting continuous learning.”
• Mental Health Nursing Expertise : “The specialized skills of mental health nurses in assessment, intervention, and patient support contribute significantly to addressing the growing mental health crisis.”

Thesis Statement Examples for Health and Wellness

Delve into 10 thesis statement examples that explore the interconnectedness of health and wellness, ranging from the integration of holistic well-being practices in healthcare to the significance of self-care in preventing burnout. These examples highlight the importance of fostering balance and proactive health measures for individuals and communities.

• Holistic Health Integration : “Incorporating holistic health practices, such as mindfulness and nutrition, within conventional healthcare models supports comprehensive well-being and disease prevention.”
• Self-Care’s Impact on Burnout : “Prioritizing self-care among healthcare professionals reduces burnout, enhances job satisfaction, and ensures high-quality patient care delivery.”
• Community Wellness Initiatives : “Community wellness programs that address physical, mental, and social well-being contribute to healthier populations and reduced healthcare burdens.”
• Wellness in Aging Populations : “Tailored wellness programs for the elderly population encompass physical activity, cognitive stimulation, and social engagement, promoting healthier aging.”
• Corporate Wellness Benefits : “Implementing corporate wellness programs enhances employee health, morale, and productivity, translating into lower healthcare costs and higher job satisfaction.”
• Nutrition’s Role in Wellness : “Prioritizing balanced nutrition through education and accessible food options plays a pivotal role in overall wellness and chronic disease prevention.”
• Mental and Emotional Well-Being : “Fostering mental and emotional well-being through therapy, support networks, and stress management positively impacts overall health and life satisfaction.”
• Wellness Tourism’s Rise : “Exploring the growth of wellness tourism underscores the demand for travel experiences that prioritize rejuvenation, relaxation, and holistic well-being.”
• Digital Health for Wellness : “Leveraging digital health platforms for wellness, such as wellness apps and wearable devices, empowers individuals to monitor and enhance their well-being.”
• Equitable Access to Wellness : “Promoting equitable access to wellness resources and facilities ensures that all individuals, regardless of socioeconomic status, can prioritize their health and well-being.”

What is a good thesis statement about mental health?

A thesis statement about mental health is a concise and clear declaration that encapsulates the main point or argument you’re making in your essay or research paper related to mental health. It serves as a roadmap for your readers, guiding them through the content and focus of your work. Crafting a strong thesis statement about mental health involves careful consideration of the topic and a clear understanding of the points you’ll discuss. Here’s how you can create a good thesis statement about mental health:

• Choose a Specific Focus : Mental health is a broad topic. Determine the specific aspect of mental health you want to explore, whether it’s the impact of stigma, the importance of access to treatment, the role of mental health in overall well-being, or another angle.
• Make a Debatable Assertion : A thesis statement should present an argument or perspective that can be debated or discussed. Avoid statements that are overly broad or universally accepted.
• Be Clear and Concise : Keep your thesis statement concise while conveying your main idea. It’s usually a single sentence that provides insight into the content of your paper.
• Provide Direction : Your thesis statement should indicate the direction your paper will take. It’s like a roadmap that tells your readers what to expect.
• Make it Strong : Strong thesis statements are specific, assertive, and supported by evidence. Don’t shy away from taking a clear stance on the topic.
• Revise and Refine : As you draft your paper, your understanding of the topic might evolve. Your thesis statement may need revision to accurately reflect your arguments.

How do you write a Health Thesis Statement? – Step by Step Guide

Crafting a strong health thesis statement requires a systematic approach. Follow these steps to create an effective health thesis statement:

• Choose a Health Topic : Select a specific health-related topic that interests you and aligns with your assignment or research objective.
• Narrow Down the Focus : Refine the topic to a specific aspect. Avoid overly broad statements; instead, zoom in on a particular issue.
• Identify Your Stance : Determine your perspective on the topic. Are you advocating for a particular solution, analyzing causes and effects, or comparing different viewpoints?
• Formulate a Debatable Assertion : Develop a clear and arguable statement that captures the essence of your position on the topic.
• Consider Counterarguments : Anticipate counterarguments and incorporate them into your thesis statement. This adds depth and acknowledges opposing views.
• Be Concise and Specific : Keep your thesis statement succinct while conveying the main point. Avoid vague language or generalities.
• Test for Clarity : Share your thesis statement with someone else to ensure it’s clear and understandable to an audience unfamiliar with the topic.
• Refine and Revise : Your thesis statement is not set in stone. As you research and write, you might find it necessary to revise and refine it to accurately reflect your evolving arguments.

Tips for Writing a Thesis Statement on Health Topics

Writing a thesis statement on health topics requires precision and careful consideration. Here are some tips to help you craft an effective thesis statement:

• Be Specific : Address a specific aspect of health rather than a broad topic. This allows for a more focused and insightful thesis statement.
• Take a Stance : Your thesis statement should present a clear perspective or argument. Avoid vague statements that don’t express a stance.
• Avoid Absolute Statements : Be cautious of using words like “always” or “never.” Instead, use language that acknowledges complexity and nuance.
• Incorporate Keywords : Include keywords that indicate the subject of your research, such as “nutrition,” “mental health,” “public health,” or other relevant terms.
• Preview Supporting Points : Your thesis statement can preview the main points or arguments you’ll discuss in your paper, providing readers with a roadmap.
• Revise as Necessary : Your thesis statement may evolve as you research and write. Don’t hesitate to revise it to accurately reflect your findings.
• Stay Focused : Ensure that your thesis statement remains directly relevant to your topic throughout your writing.

Remember that your thesis statement is the foundation of your paper. It guides your research and writing process, helping you stay on track and deliver a coherent argument.

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The Effects of Stress on Physical Activity and Exercise

Associated data.

Psychological stress and physical activity (PA) are believed to be reciprocally related; however, most research examining the relationship between these constructs is devoted to the study of exercise and/or PA as an instrument to mitigate distress.

The aim of this paper was to review the literature investigating the influence of stress on indicators of PA and exercise.

A systematic search of Web of Science, Pub-Med, and SPORTDiscus was employed to find all relevant studies focusing on human participants. Search terms included “stress”, “exercise”, and “physical activity”. A rating scale (0–9) modified for this study was utilized to assess the quality of all studies with multiple time points.

The literature search found 168 studies that examined the influence of stress on PA. Studies varied widely in their theoretical orientation and included perceived stress, distress, life events, job strain, role strain, and work–family conflict but not lifetime cumulative adversity. To more clearly address the question, prospective studies ( n = 55) were considered for further review, the majority of which indicated that psychological stress predicts less PA (behavioral inhibition) and/or exercise or more sedentary behavior (76.4 %). Both objective (i.e., life events) and subjective (i.e., distress) measures of stress related to reduced PA. Prospective studies investigating the effects of objective markers of stress nearly all agreed (six of seven studies) that stress has a negative effect on PA. This was true for research examining (a) PA at periods of objectively varying levels of stress (i.e., final examinations vs. a control time point) and (b) chronically stressed populations (e.g., caregivers, parents of children with a cancer diagnosis) that were less likely to be active than controls over time. Studies examining older adults (>50 years), cohorts with both men and women, and larger sample sizes ( n > 100) were more likely to show an inverse association. 85.7 % of higher-quality prospective research (≥7 on a 9-point scale) showed the same trend. Interestingly, some prospective studies (18.2 %) report evidence that PA was positively impacted by stress (behavioral activation). This should not be surprising as some individuals utilize exercise to cope with stress. Several other factors may moderate stress and PA relationships, such as stages of change for exercise. Habitually active individuals exercise more in the face of stress, and those in beginning stages exercise less. Consequently, stress may have a differential impact on exercise adoption, maintenance, and relapse. Preliminary evidence suggests that combining stress management programming with exercise interventions may allay stress-related reductions in PA, though rigorous testing of these techniques has yet to be produced.

Conclusions

Overall, the majority of the literature finds that the experience of stress impairs efforts to be physically active. Future work should center on the development of a theory explaining the mechanisms underlying the multifarious influences of stress on PA behaviors.

1 Introduction

1.1 review of the problem.

The association between physical activity (PA), exercise, and health outcomes is well-established [ 1 , 2 ]. In the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) database, the number of unhealthy days reported by 175,850 adults was inversely associated with PA [ 3 ]. Those who exercise have a lower incidence of coronary events and cardiovascular disease. There is a strong inverse relation between exercise and obesity and diabetes mellitus [ 4 , 5 ]. Furthermore, those who exercise have fewer incidences of certain types of cancers [ 6 ] and more robust immune responses [ 7 ]. Interventions designed to increase PA have resulted in profound reductions in physical ailments [ 8 , 9 ]. There is a similar picture for exercise and mental health outcomes. Those who exercise suffer from less depression [ 10 ], anxiety [ 11 ], fatigue [ 12 , 13 ], and cognitive impairments [ 14 , 15 ].

Despite the well-known benefits of PA, the practice of this behavior is very low. Approximately 21.9 % of adults in the US participate in light-to-moderate leisure-time PA a minimum of five times per week, and only 11.1 % of adults engage in vigorous leisure-time PA at this same frequency [ 16 ]. According to self-report data from the BRFSS, only 48.8 % of US adults meet the minimum level of PA necessary for maintaining good health as determined by the Healthy People 2010 objectives [ 16 ].

Recent evidence suggests that one’s experience of stress may be an important impediment for achieving healthful levels of PA [ 17 , 18 ]. Despite the well-known effects of exercise on mental health outcomes, a lesser emphasis has been placed on the reverse relationship [ 19 , 20 ]. A firmly established reverse link for depression and PA suggests that a similar trend may exist for stress and PA [ 21 , 22 ]. While related to stress, depression is, nonetheless, a distinctly different construct [ 23 ]. At this time, no paper has attempted to synthesize the evidence both for and against the effects of mental stress on exercise behavior. The aim of this review is to fill this gap in the literature and to identify factors that may moderate the relationship, which may help to identify both populations vulnerable to the effects of stress and mechanisms responsible for the relationship.

1.2 Understanding Stress

There is no universal agreement on the definition of stress. McEwen [ 24 ] simply states that “Stress is a word used to describe experiences that are challenging emotionally and physiologically.” These stressors may be acute (e.g., hassles) or chronic (e.g., bereavement), small in magnitude (e.g., standing in a long line), or traumatic (e.g., violent attack) [ 25 ]. Contrary to the view of stress as an impinging stimulus, other definitions provide a glimpse into what systems are challenged and how the human organism reacts. Stress may be defined as a state of threatened homeostasis, which is counteracted by adaptive processes involving affective, physiological, biochemical, and cognitive–behavioral responses in an attempt to regain homeostasis [ 26 , 27 ]. Stress reactions are always followed by recovery processes, which may be compromised when stressors are severe, prolonged, or unaccustomed [ 28 , 29 ]. The adaptive capacity to deal with stress is one’s fitness, which when exceeded may place the individual at greater risk for disease [ 30 ]. This may be manifested in the dysregulation of active processes of adaptation, or allostasis, resulting in cumulative wear and tear of the body, also known as allostatic load [ 24 , 31 ]. Typically, this has been utilized to explain how chronic stressors relate to physiological maladaptations in middle and later life [ 32 ]; however, mounting evidence also implicates traumatic childhood experiences, stressors that have a reverberating impact for decades [ 33 , 34 ]. Therefore, stressful events appear to accumulate from the earliest days of life, and this cumulative adversity may have a profound impact on a wide range of health outcomes [ 35 ].

Lazarus and Folkman [ 36 ] provide a transactional cognitive component to stress with their concept of appraisal, which indicates that individuals only perceive stress when a challenge or event is both threatening and of such a nature that the individual is unable to cope. In this viewpoint, objective demands and subjective appraisals may differentially impact health behaviors. It is important to note, however, that some stressors may be appraised as positive [ 24 , 37 ]. Cognitive models of the stress concept have recently been overshadowed by new research on the integrated role of the brain (particularly centers of emotion and memory) as a regulator of stress processes [ 24 ].

1.3 Relationship of Stress to Health Outcomes and Behavior

Psychological stress has a deleterious effect on a wide range of physical and mental health outcomes with accumulating evidence that health practices/maladaptive behaviors may mediate these relationships [ 38 ]. Stress has been strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of coronary heart disease [ 39 ] and the incidence of acute myocardial infarctions [ 40 ]. Those under high stress are less likely to survive cardiac events [ 41 ]. Alterations in the immune system by stress are well-established [ 42 ], and those who report high levels of stress are more likely to become infected [ 43 ]. The nervous system is also compromised during times of undue stress [ 44 , 45 ]. Stress is associated with a host of mental symptoms as well, including cognitive dysfunction, dementia [ 46 ], and excessive fatigue [ 13 , 47 , 48 ]. While stress may have a direct effect on health (e.g., dysregulation of hormonal axes), indirect routes toward maladaptation also likely exist [ 49 , 50 ]. For instance, stress is related to declining physical function over time [ 51 ] and obesity [ 52 - 54 ], which contributes to cardiovascular disease. Another likely factor is impaired health/lifestyle practices and maladaptive behaviors, such as decreased exercise and PA and increased sedentarianism [ 50 ]. Furthermore, delays in recovery from exercise [ 29 ] and dampened muscular and neural adaptations are observed with chronic stress [ 55 , 56 ]. It is of no wonder that individuals under high stress are much more likely to incur greater healthcare costs [ 57 ].

1.4 Understanding Physical Activity (PA)

In contrast to the apparently debilitating effects of unremitting psychological stress, PA appears to have a salubrious effect on many health outcomes. PA is “any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure [ 58 ] above resting (basal) levels [ 59 ]. PA broadly encompasses exercise, sports, and physical activities done as part of daily living, occupation, leisure, and active transportation” [ 60 ]. Also implicit in this definition is that PA is a physical stressor, though not necessarily an uncomfortable one. Exercise is a behavioral subset of PA and is defined as “Physical activity that is planned, structured, and repetitive and has as a final or intermediate objective the improvement or maintenance of physical fitness” [ 58 ]. Dissimilarly, sedentarianism is “activity that involves little or no movement or PA, having an energy expenditure of about 1–1.5 metabolic equivalents (METs). Examples are sitting, watching television, playing video games, and using a computer” [ 61 ]. These definitions connote that PA behaviors are specific to a person, situation, and context. Also, they suggest that these concepts are quantified in terms of mode, frequency, duration, and intensity [ 60 ].

1.5 Beneficial Effects of PA/Exercise on Psychological Stress

When the PA and stress relationship is explored, it has typically been within the perspective of improving mental health outcomes via exercise [ 62 ]. As suggested earlier, those who exercise have lesser rates of depression, negative affectivity, and anxiety [ 10 , 11 ]. Indeed, PA and exercise have been demonstrated to promote positive changes in one’s mental health and ability to cope with stressful encounters [ 19 , 63 , 64 ]. Moreover, exercise interventions appear to improve one’s depression status [ 65 , 66 ].

In terms of psychological stress, similar patterns are observed in cross-sectional, prospective, and experimental studies. Exercise is associated with less subjective stress, a finding that has been observed in numerous populations from athletes to older adults to veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder [ 67 - 78 ]. While it is equivocal whether those who exercise have fewer life events [ 79 - 81 ], there is an association between exercise and fewer daily hassles [ 82 ]. It appears that the quantity of calories expended is most important. For instance, Aldana et al. [ 83 ] found that individuals who expend more than 3.0 kcal/kg/day in PA during leisure time were 78 and 62 % less likely to have moderate and high perceived stress, respectively. However, the intensity of exercise may play a key role as those who participated in exercise that was of a moderate intensity exhibited approximately half the amount of perceived stress as those who reported no exercise [ 83 ]. Intervention and prospective studies demonstrate that exercise and PA programs result in less perceived stress in real-world settings [ 75 , 84 – 90 ]. Randomized clinical trials have determined that exercise is an effective method for improving perceived stress, stress symptoms, and quality of life [ 91 - 95 ]. Exercise neutralizes the effects of psychological stressors on cardiac reactivity [ 96 ] and dampens stressor-evoked increases in stress hormones [ 97 ] and serotonin [ 98 ]. For instance, Throne et al. [ 99 ] found that a 16-week intervention (exercise four times per week, 40 min) improved stress reactivity in a group of fire fighters. It appears that PA, and not fitness, mollifies the effects of stress [ 64 , 100 ]; however, there is not universal agreement on this point. Those who are aerobically fit have less cardiac reactivity to stressors [ 101 - 103 ] and also better cardiovascular recovery [ 104 - 107 ]. Apart from these distinctions, a recent review concludes that exercise buffers the effects of stress on physical health [ 49 ]. For instance, exercise prevents stress-induced immunosuppression [ 108 ]. Considering the seemingly profound effects of exercise on stress, movement has been conceptualized as a method to inoculate individuals against the throes of stressful experience [ 109 ]. However, the relationship of PA with stress has not always been consistent. For instance, in two cross-lagged studies, exercise at time 1 did not predict stress at time 2 [ 20 , 110 ]. Furthermore, several studies have found no relationship between stress and exercise constructs [ 111 , 112 ] or relationships that were positive instead of negative [ 113 , 114 ].

1.6 Reciprocal Relationship of Stress and PA

The extant literature largely concludes there are relationships between stress and PA/exercise, and that PA repels the negative effects of psychological stress, but what of the relationships in the opposite direction? In other words, is stress detrimental towards the effort of adopting and maintaining exercise behavior? It has been noted extensively that a dynamic, bi-directional relationship likely exists [ 19 , 21 , 24 , 38 , 49 , 50 , 83 , 115 - 124 ], but this direction of influence is often overlooked [ 53 ]. Salmon [ 19 ] mused that the stress and PA-exercise relationships are open to interpretation, and “people who are less disturbed by stress might simply be more ready to take up exercise training” (p. 46). Zillman and Bryant [ 117 ] propose that in response to stress people will engage in unhealthy behaviors, such as poor dietary practices or a lack of exercise, as a means of emotion-focused coping. Indeed, a plethora of research links stress to increased smoking [ 125 - 127 ], use of alcohol [ 128 ], and increased substance abuse [ 27 , 129 , 130 ]. While less pernicious, stress is associated with dietary relapse [ 131 - 133 ], binge eating [ 134 ], increased caffeine consumption [ 135 ] and television viewing [ 136 , 137 ]. Studies examining composite scores of collective health behaviors, including PA, find that stress is predictive of negative health behaviors [ 138 - 143 ]. In fact, stress accounts for a substantial proportion of variance in collective health behaviors [ 143 ]. Considering the multifarious relationships between stress and behavior, it is plausible that stress is related to both PA and exercise as well.

Further evidence of this proposed relationship emanates from studies on depression and negative affect and how these factors predict PA. Negative affectivity, anxiety, anger, and distress inversely predict exercise behavior [ 21 , 144 - 148 ]. Negative affect predicts missed practices due to injury and illness, and this may be attenuated with the implementation of a stress inoculation training program [ 149 ]. Depression predicted changes in PA in women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer [ 150 ] and was related to less PA in the Alameda County study [ 151 ]. Depressed cardiac rehabilitation patients are less likely to adhere to the exercise program; coming to fewer sessions and dropping out at high rates [ 152 ]. Concurring with these observations, a recent review of prospective studies found that depression at baseline is inversely related to measures of PA at later periods [ 22 ]. Reviews examining factors associated with increased exercise behavior and adherence have found mixed or a lack of evidence of an association between stress and PA, particularly when compared to other factors [ 153 - 161 ]. However, in every review, authors failed to amass the bulk of pertinent literature on the topic. Lutz et al.[ 20 ], in an attempt to address the bi-directional relationship of stress and exercise, determined that the relationship was stronger in the direction less often studied, underscoring the notion that stress degrades this healthful behavior. Since this time, however, no review has attempted to synthesize the diverse literature examining the effects of stress on PA. The purpose of this review, therefore, was to fill this gap by systematically identifying, classifying, and appraising the extant literature on this topic across all pertinent disciplines, including sports medicine, health psychology, health promotion and occupational health, among other areas.

2.1 Search for Publications

A search was conducted in Web of Science, SPORTDiscus and PubMed for relevant literature. The search terms utilized were “stress”, “exercise”, and “physical activity”. This yielded a large number of returns. Consequently, the search was narrowed by selecting options in each database. When possible, articles were eliminated for irrelevant fields (e.g., engineering, chemical science, etc), unoriginal data (e.g., review articles, corrections, editorials, magazine articles), non-human subjects, and text not reported in the English language. Starting with Web of Science, titles and abstracts of articles were reviewed by one of the authors (MSK) for relevance with date in descending order. To speed the search, titles containing “stress test”, “oxidative stress”, “stress fracture”, “stress incontinence”, or “urinary stress” were automatically disqualified. Abstracts were also reviewed for relevance and scanned to make sure that PA was the outcome variable of interest and stress variables were the predictors. Case-control studies that investigated PA in stressed populations were retained. After this process was completed for the first database, the inspection of results for SPORTDiscus ensued. Articles were further eliminated if they were duplicated in Web of Science. This resulted in a very small collection of additional articles. With the additional fact that the initial results from PubMed were very large, the search date range was shortened to the years 2000–2012. These returns were searched for relevance as before. Finally, all article reference lists were examined for pertinent reports. The last search for articles via database was in July 2012 (see Fig. 1 ).

Flow chart of literature review for the effects of stress on physical activity

2.2 Study Quality Assessment

Prospective studies ( n = 55) were assessed for risk of bias with a quality assessment rating scale modeled after Rhodes and colleagues [ 162 ]. As with this former study, this instrument was developed to assess risk of bias as defined by the Cochrane Collaboration [ 163 ]. The quality scale comprised nine questions answered with a “yes” or “no” response (e.g., Did the study include a control group comparison? Was an objective measure of physical activity/inactivity used?). Low risk of bias (high quality) was deemed for studies with a score of 7–9, moderate quality and risk of bias for studies with scores between 5 and 6, and high risk of bias (low quality) for studies with a score of 4 or below (see Electronic Supplementary Material, Appendix 1 ).

3.1 The Effects of Psychological Stress on PA/Exercise: State of the Literature

The search yielded a total of 168 papers interested in the impact of stress on PA. Five studies were published in the 1980s, 37 in the 1990s, 86 in the 2000s, and 40 from 2010 to July 2012 (see Fig. 2 ). The first evidence in the scientific literature of the link between mental stress and PA was reported in the early 1980s [ 164 ] (refer to Gardell et al. [ 165 ] for an earlier study reported in Swedish). Research at this time addressed the impact of stress on a host of health-promoting and -degrading behaviors, including alcohol use, smoking, dietary practices, and PA [ 164 , 166 - 168 ], in particular in relation to their role as risk factors for cardiovascular disease. This early work was epidemiological in nature, typically cross-sectional, employing very large sample sizes [ 164 , 169 , 170 ]. Furthermore, the population of focus frequently was middle-aged adults in occupational settings [ 169 , 170 ].

Yearly distribution of publications ( n = 168) examining the association of stress and physical activity/exercise from 1984 to 2012

Since this time, research designs have varied widely and have extended to include qualitative [ 171 - 179 ], retrospective [ 77 , 180 - 183 ], prospective [ 17 , 20 , 184 - 192 ], and experimental work [ 193 ], although most studies are cross-sectional [ 143 , 194 - 196 ]. Likewise, studies have narrowed from the examination of stress on the wider scope of health behaviors to a specific focus on the effects of stress on PA and exercise. Furthermore, stress has emerged as a central component of several theoretical models of PA behavior [ 170 , 197 - 200 ]. Most studies investigating the relationship between stress and PA have anticipated that stress would debilitate PA behavior. However, some studies have specifically approached the problem from a coping perspective, predicting enhanced PA under stress [ 168 , 188 , 201 ].

The majority of studies identified by the literature review supported the hypothesis that stress has an impact, whether negative or positive, on PA behaviors ( n = 134, 79.8 %). However, the literature is not entirely in agreement with regards to the valence of the association. The majority of studies ( n = 123, 72.8 %) provide evidence that psychological stress predicts lesser PA or exercise. Nevertheless, correlations of stress and exercise in studies supporting the association typically find no relationship greater than –0.28 to –0.42 [ 89 , 143 , 202 - 204 ]. Conversely, 29 (17.2 %) studies provide evidence of an increase in PA with stress. As might be apparent, some papers reported evidence indicating (a) an association in both a positive and negative direction; and (b) that some indicators of stress and PA were not associated, but others were in either a positive or inverse direction (see Table 1 ).

Summary of 168 studies exploring relationships between stress and indices of physical activity and exercise a

PA physical activity

3.2 Supporting Evidence for an Inverse Relationship Between Stress and PA

3.2.1 cross-sectional, retrospective, and qualitative studies.

Studies conducted over a single time point (cross-sectional, qualitative, and retrospective, n = 114) have established an association between stress and PA. While two-thirds (67.0 %) of cross-sectional studies reported a negative association of stress with exercise, qualitative and retrospective (where respondents self-assess changes in PA) studies unanimously find evidence of an inverse association. These studies were typically of lower quality, with the exception of one study which reported that nearly 30 % of college students who were sufficiently active in high school did not attain this level of PA when transitioning to college [ 180 ] (see Electronic Supplementary Material, Appendix 2 for more details).

Stress has been inversely related to exercise and PA behavior most frequently for employee populations (22 studies) [ 83 , 194 , 205 - 224 ], but also for individuals in community fitness programs [ 225 ], those with heart disease [ 147 , 226 ], pregnant women [ 174 ] and those in national probability samples [ 227 , 228 ]. When examining specific age groups, it is apparent that the results replicate for college-aged and young adults [ 180 , 202 , 203 , 229 - 231 ], middle-aged adults [ 143 , 167 , 232 , 233 ], and the elderly [ 195 , 234 - 237 ], but no cross-sectional data exist for children and only qualitative data exist for adolescents [ 171 ]. The relationship has been found for both genders, although several studies found that men were more vulnerable than women [ 194 , 229 , 237 , 238 ], while other studies observed the opposite trend [ 202 , 239 , 240 ]. Stress also was related to lesser PA in several minority populations [ 177 , 195 , 198 , 219 , 241 ], and ethnicity/race may interact with stress on PA [ 207 , 242 ]. However, there appears to be no moderating effect of age or education [ 196 ]. The associations appear to be true for reports of exercise [ 243 - 245 ], PA measures [ 202 , 203 ], sedentary behavior/inactivity [ 170 , 195 , 197 , 209 , 230 , 246 , 247 ] and days of sports participation [ 171 , 248 ], but little data exist for energy expenditure [ 249 ]. Stress is linked to low levels of PA in chronically stressed populations, such as military spouses [ 196 ], cancer survivors and those in treatment [ 182 , 243 , 250 ], low-income and first-time mothers [ 172 , 173 , 251 ], medical school students [ 229 , 252 ] and caregivers [ 239 , 240 , 253 - 257 ]. Several case-control studies have demonstrated that stressed populations, such as caregivers and parents of children with cancer, have lower PA and exercise behavior than matched control groups [ 239 , 240 , 254 , 255 , 258 ].

3.2.2 Prospective Studies

Directionality of the stress and PA association is evidenced by many prospective studies in which a time-lagged effect may be assessed ( n = 55) (see Table 2 ). The majority of these studies ( n = 35; 63.6 %) were rated as high quality, meaning that they were more likely to use validated instruments, control comparisons, appropriate statistical methods, and theoretical frameworks. Some studies, however, were of moderate ( n = 19) to low ( n = 1) quality (see Electronic Supplementary Material, Appendix 1 ). Many studies conducted in naturalistic settings have found evidence that stress is associated with facets of PA at a later time point [ 17 , 20 , 79 , 181 , 210 , 245 , 259 - 272 ]. For instance, in an employee population from a large food processing plant in Texas, USA, Lutz et al. [ 20 ] found that perceived stress predicted leisure time PA 2 months later. Furthermore, this association was greater than the cross-lagged relationship of exercise at time 1 on perceived stress at time 2. Likewise, in a random sample of Danish adults, those who were high in stress were 2.63 times more likely to be classified as inactive at baseline and 90 % more likely to become inactive a decade later [ 270 ]. Burton et al. [ 263 ] found that those low in emotional stress were more likely to initiate brisk PA at least three times a week than those high in stress (35.8 vs. 14.6 %). In this same study, low-stress individuals were also more likely to maintain PA over a 4-year period (69 vs. 36.4 %). On the other hand, a few studies have found no support whatsoever of a relationship [ 79 , 145 , 191 , 273 - 277 ] or evidence for a positive association of stress and PA [ 17 , 188 , 259 , 261 , 262 , 264 , 267 , 269 , 278 - 280 ] (see below for more details).

Prospective studies of all designs investigating the effects of stress on indices of physical activity

AIHW Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, BDI Beck Depression Inventory, BMI body mass index, CBT cognitive–behavioral therapy, CI confidence interval, COEFF coefficient, CVD cardiovascular disease, DASS Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, DUR duration, ES effect size, FREQ frequency, GHQ General Health Questionnaire, HLM hierarchical linear modeling, HPLP Health Promotion Lifestyle Profile, LTPA leisure time physical activity, M men, METs metabolic equivalents, MVPA moderate to vigorous physical activity, NA negative affectivity, NHIS National Health Interview Survey, NS not significant, NY New York, OR odds ratio, PA physical activity, PBC perceived behavioral control, POMS Profile of Mood States, PSS Perceived Stress Scale, PTSD post-traumatic stress disorder, Q questionnaire, QR quality assessment rating (1–9 scale; see text), RCT randomized control trial, SD standard deviation, SE standard error, SEM structural equation modeling, TMAS taylor manifest anxiety scale, TV television, W women, WSI Weekly Stress Inventory

Studies employing diary techniques have found that exercise behavior changes in days [ 269 , 281 , 282 ] and weeks when experiencing stressful events [ 17 , 188 , 189 ] and subjective stressful states [ 265 ]. Jones et al. [ 267 ] found this was true for negative affectivity, but job strain was related to greater PA over a 4-week period. Mixed results were also discovered by Lutz et al. [ 17 ] who followed a group of 95 young women over a 6-week period. In this study, less-experienced exercisers held steady or declined in self-reported exercise frequency, intensity, and duration during weeks of greater life event stress frequency and impact. Stetson and colleagues [ 189 ] utilized the same measure of life events (the Weekly Stress Inventory [ 283 ]) and compared periods of low versus high stress among middle-aged women. They found an effect of stress frequency but not stress impact on exercise duration (effect size [ES] = 0.14) while stress impact influenced the number of planned exercise sessions that were missed (ES = 0.22). In a study with a similar data analytic approach, Steptoe et al. [ 188 ] found that exercise frequency and duration of both moderate/vigorous and low-intensity exercise decreased between two low-stress and two high-stress weeks; however, this was not statistically significant ( d values = 0.16–0.25). Unfortunately, this study suffered from high attrition, which may have masked any significant results as stressed individuals tend to dropout at higher rates.

Finally, intervention studies targeting stress [ 284 ] or exercise/health behaviors [ 89 , 124 , 204 , 281 , 285 - 287 ] have found inverse associations between stress and indicators of PA over time. For instance, Urizar et al. [ 89 ] found that PA changes over a 10-week period were moderately correlated with maternal stressors over the same period ( r = –0.42). In a particularly interesting study, Dougall and colleagues [ 286 ] were granted permission to access records of students’ use of a university fitness center. The frequency of these visits was related inversely to stress levels. Some interventions, however, have found no association [ 145 , 273 , 276 , 277 ] or that higher stress relates to greater PA [ 279 ]. Improvements in exercise readiness over time are compromised by the experience of stress [ 124 ]. Whether stress has a stronger association with adoption or continued participation of an exercise routine/PA programming is undetermined [ 184 , 278 , 288 ]. Indeed, both subjective stress and life events negatively affect adherence to exercise programming [ 89 , 184 , 204 , 287 , 289 , 290 ] and intervention attrition [ 145 ], but not all studies agree with this assessment [ 145 , 276 ]. Post-intervention PA maintenance may be affected to a greater degree by the experience of stress [ 184 , 291 ]. In an underpowered investigation, Williams and Lord found a trend in this direction, which was not significant [ 277 ].

3.2.3 Prospective Evidence of Changes in PA Behaviors During Objective Conditions of Stress

In rare instances, prospective studies have employed designs to compare a period of objective stress (i.e., final examinations) with a less stressful period [ 185 , 187 , 191 , 192 ], to compare a stressed and non-stressed population over time [ 186 , 190 ], or to manipulate a laboratory stressor compared to a control condition [ 193 ]. These studies were typically of high quality (rating ≥7), with one exception [ 185 ] (see Table 2 ). Of these seven studies, six discovered a statistically significant effect of stress on exercise and/or PA.

Final examinations are naturalistic stressors which have been studied opportunistically to assess temporal associations of stress and PA behaviors. Examinations are also objectively stressful, typically endure over a longer time frame (as opposed to a discrete conflict) and provide greater ecological validity than laboratory-induced stressors. Oaten and Cheng [ 192 ] and Steptoe et al. [ 187 ] assessed students during a baseline period near the beginning of a semester and also during final examinations. Control groups were assessed at the end of the semester but not during examinations. Both studies found declines in duration of exercise/PA compared to controls, but Oaten and Cheng [ 192 ] also found declines in exercise frequency and the perceived ease of exercise. Final examinations are not uniformly stressful over an entire examination period. In an attempt to capture the most stressful point of this time frame, Sherman et al. [ 185 ] measured exercise in a group of 17 students 14 days before their most stressful final examination (as determined by self-rating of anticipated strain). Their exploratory analysis found that exercise decreased on the day of the examination compared with 14 days earlier ( d = 0.62; η 2 = 0.23). In a less rigorous design, Griffin et al. [ 191 ] found that exercise decreased for those college students experiencing increased demands during examination stress; however, the changes were not significant. Nevertheless, there was a significant correlation between stress and exercise at baseline. The lack of a significant finding at the second time point may be related to the fact that this study was confounded by a high dropout rate.

Two longitudinal, case-control studies agree that stress has an influence on PA. Smith et al. [ 186 ] found that parents of a child who had just received a cancer diagnosis reported lower weekly PA and more television viewing post-diagnosis than parents of a healthy child (approximately a 1,000 kcal difference). The size of the effect post-diagnosis was 1.71 (Cohen’s d ) and 3 months later was 1.13, indicating a large effect. Vitaliano et al. [ 190 ], studying caregivers and matched controls both with and without a cancer diagnosis, found that caregivers were higher in stress indicators, as expected, and also lower in reported exercise frequency at two time points. When comparing the caregivers and controls without cancer, the effect sizes (Cohen’s d ) were 0.41 and 0.57.

The study by Roemmich et al. [ 193 ] is exceptional in that it identified that a single, acute interpersonal stressor causes reductions in PA. Children participated in two experimental conditions, the order of which was randomized within subjects. The experimental condition was a strong interpersonal stressor, where the child prepared and delivered a videotaped speech on a social topic. The control condition was a passive reading activity. After each condition, children were provided the opportunity to be active on a cycle ergometer or remain sedentary. Results indicated that after the stressor condition, both energy expenditure and total exercise minutes decreased. In fact, PA decreased by 21 % during the stress condition; however, changes in perceived stress were not related to changes in exercise behavior ( r = –0.19). Furthermore, those children who had high autonomic stress reactivity had even greater reductions in these exercise variables. Altogether, these results indicate that acute and transient life stressors have a negative impact on PA in humans.

3.2.4 Factors that may Influence Prospective Associations Between PA and Stress

The relationship of PA and stress may vary based on several factors. Therefore, results were further broken down by gender, age, sample size, study quality, and whether the study focused specifically on clinical populations or cohorts of employees. Levels of these factors with >80 % of studies finding evidence of an inverse association were deemed as more likely to be negatively affected by stress. Per this cutoff, studies examining older adults (>50 years; 80.0 %), cohorts with men and women and larger sample sizes ( n > 100; 82.1 %), as well as studies of higher quality (≥7 on a 9-point scale; 85.7 %) were more likely to show an inverse association. Other factors, such as whether a study’s subject pool comprised employees or a clinical population, did not clearly differentiate the literature (see Electronic Supplementary Material, Appendix 3 ).

3.3 Contrary Evidence for an Association Between Stress and PA

Despite this evidence, some studies have found no association whatsoever between stress and PA. In fact, 34 studies in this review found no effect of stress on PA outcomes and several more found marginal or conflicting results [ 79 , 127 , 145 , 166 , 169 , 191 , 200 , 205 , 273 - 277 , 292 - 312 ]. These studies frequently had less rigorous designs [ 166 ], smaller samples sizes [ 273 , 303 ], and very poor measures of PA/exercise and/or psychological stress [ 297 , 308 , 310 ]. Stress management interventions have failed to demonstrate a concurrent increase in subjective and objective markers of PA [ 273 ], and stress did not appear to affect compliance with exercise programming [ 276 ]. As mentioned above, eight prospective studies did not find a relationship. For instance, Grace et al. [ 274 ], examining a group of pregnant women over three time periods during and after pregnancy, found no relationship of role strain or pregnancy (a major life event) with PA.

3.4 Evidence that Stress may Increase PA

Speaking to the point of positive influences of stress, 29 studies found that stress predicts an increase in PA behavior [ 3 , 17 , 81 , 164 , 168 , 171 , 172 , 175 , 183 , 251 , 253 , 254 , 256 , 259 , 262 , 264 , 267 , 269 , 278 - 280 , 313 - 320 ], ten of which were prospective (see above). Other studies found trends in this direction [ 169 , 191 ]. Lutz et al. [ 17 ] found that this was only the case for habituated exercisers. Brown et al. [ 262 ] found that some life events were associated with increased PA, including distressing harassment, beginning a new close personal relationship, retirement, changing work conditions, major personal achievement, death of a spouse/partner, and income reduction. Seigel et al. [ 183 ] reports that in a random sample of young Swedish women, 22.0 % were likely to increase PA, 60.1 % were likely to be unaffected, and only about 16.5 % of respondents were likely to decrease PA with the experience of stress.

3.5 Life Transitions, Major Events, and Trauma

A substantial portion of the literature focused on specific events, life transitions, or distinct experiences of trauma. As noted above [ 262 ], some life experiences result in enhancement of PA behavior. Nevertheless, this same study found that exercise declines for women for some types of events, including the birth of one’s first or second baby or grandchild, having a child with a serious illness or disability, beginning work outside the home, major personal illness or injury, major surgery, or moving into an institution [ 262 ]. Death of a spouse was deleterious for PA in older women [ 204 ]. Transitioning from high school to college or leaving college and entering the workforce full-time is also predictive of a decline in PA [ 180 , 260 , 321 ]. Fan et al. [ 200 ] found that being a victim of violence, harassment, or other threats was not related to PA. This is contradicted by evidence that exercise behavior substantially declined for New Yorkers after the trauma of the 9/11 attacks [ 181 ]. In contrast, the experience of Hurricane Katrina in the USA has been associated with heightened levels of PA [ 313 ].

4 Discussion

4.1 summary.

The majority of the literature finds an inverse association of stress and PA behaviors. The current search uncovered 168 studies reported in the English language exploring these relationships in humans. This demonstrates a high level of interest in the topic for the last two decades, with an apparent acceleration in research production in the area. The literature provided ample support for an association between stress and PA (79.8 %), and of the studies identified, 72.8 % supported the hypotheses that higher stress is associated with lesser exercise and/or PA. Prospective studies with objective markers of stress, one indicator of study quality, nearly unanimously agreed (six of seven studies, 85.7 %) with this conclusion. Studies examining older adults (>50 years), cohorts with men and women, and larger sample sizes ( n > 100) as well as studies of higher quality (≥7 on a 9-point scale) were more likely to show an inverse association. Other factors, such as whether a study’s subject pool comprised employees or a clinical population, did not clearly differentiate the literature finding inverse relationships between stress and PA and the literature finding a null association. Interestingly, 17.2 % of prospective studies found evidence that stress was predictive of greater PA and exercise behavior, and qualitative studies were particularly equivocal in regards to the valence of the association. While these findings cannot be labeled definitively as anomalies, it is clear that stress exerts a generally negative influence on PA.

The review of the literature found many life events and transitions that resulted in changed PA [ 3 , 260 , 262 ]. This specific area of inquiry has garnered substantial interest, with two review articles already published identifying specific life events that relate to perturbations in PA [ 322 , 323 ]. One recent review determined that five life changes were associated with change in PA: employment status, residence, relationships, family structure, and physical status [ 322 ]. Marriage and remarriage are often, but not always, associated with declines in fitness while divorce is associated with gains in fitness, at least in men [ 266 , 324 ]. Chronic disease diagnosis can be very stressful [ 325 ] and a vast literature connects the diagnosis of cancer [ 182 , 243 , 264 , 315 , 326 - 328 ] and HIV [ 329 ] with changes in PA. However, only a few studies gauge how mental stress associated with these conditions relates to changes in PA [ 182 , 264 ], and none were able to objectively capture PA before a diagnosis. Another criticism of this approach is that many of the above events may be interpreted as being positive in nature. However, from a classic life stress perspective, any type of event or transition that causes dramatic changes to one’s life can result in concomitant changes in behavior and health [ 330 ]. Alternatively, being inundated with minor nuisances may also weaken one’s attempts for healthy behavior—perhaps to a similar degree as the experience of a small number of major life events [ 17 , 189 ]. A familiar example includes holiday periods, when many people exercise less and eat more [ 331 ]. Given that most humans experience change frequently, clarification is needed to discern the specific conditions under which an event or series of events may perturb PA.

As might be expected, not all studies found an association between stress and PA. However, several studies suggest that the association may be indirect or masked by factors that moderate the relationship, such as exercise stage of change [ 17 , 332 , 333 ]. For instance, Lutz et al. [ 17 ] found that that women in the habit of exercising, in other words, at a higher stage of change, exercised more during times of stress. Conversely, infrequent exercisers were less active during periods of strain. This finding was supported by Seigel et al. [ 183 ], who found that young women who increased activity with stress were more avid exercisers. One’s stage of change for exercise, however, is not itself related to indicators of stress [ 243 , 334 ]. Budden and Sagarin [ 210 ] found no association between exercise and occupational stress, but did find that stress related to perceived behavioral control for exercise, which in turn predicted exercise intention. Intention was predictive of actual exercise behavior. Payne et al. [ 333 ] found a similar pattern of results in a group of 286 British employees. Clearly, the influence of stress varies by individual attributes, which in some cases may obscure simple associations between stress and PA.

4.2 Clinical Implications

Stress interferes with the engagement of activity for the majority of people, which has important theoretical, practical, and clinical significance for professionals in the health and exercise fields. This is especially true given that the experience of stress (a) is widely prevalent; (b) has repercussions for a wide range of health issues; and (c) is reported as a growing problem in developed countries around the globe [ 18 ]. On the second assertion, it is well-known that a link exists between stress and the development of depression, cardiovascular disease, and many other health endpoints [ 50 ]. Convincing evidence is emerging that such links are moderated by PA [ 49 , 53 ], with some data indicating that the connection is contingent on changes to this behavior [ 212 ]. With all of these facts in mind, health policies should include provisions for integrated prevention and treatment of chronic stress and its behavioral and medical sequela. Before this progress can materialize, however, the well-identified associations between stress and health-promoting behavior must be more recognized within the community of PA researchers, practitioners, and other advocates.

At this time, action must be taken to advance PA interventions by interweaving effective stress management techniques. Simply arousing knowledge of stress is not sufficient [ 335 ]. First, practitioners should measure objective and subjective measures of stress for each individual. This effort will help to identify those at risk for the effects of stress. Working with an interdisciplinary team, such as psychologists and therapists, will help to promote careful interpretation of these data and will provide the resources to more carefully attune to the client’s stressors and associated constrains, barriers, and needs [ 336 ]. Furthermore, practitioners should be mindful of stress vulnerability across stages of change and refine prescriptions accordingly to magnify adherence and to prevent relapse and dropout [ 184 , 189 ]. For people contemplating a new exercise regimen, stress may interfere with attempts to initiate PA, and this may translate to an inability to reach healthful levels of exercise [ 184 , 189 ]. On the other hand, those habituated to exercise exhibit resilience in the face of stress [ 17 , 183 ]. In addition to exercise habits, it is worthwhile to identify individuals’ coping style. Some people use exercise to deal with stress (exercise approach) while others become distracted and succumb to the lure of less healthful behaviors (exercise avoidance). This emphasizes further that prescriptions should be tailored to the individual [ 60 ]. Stress differentially impacts various populations and interventions must be modified accordingly [ 232 , 337 ]. As an example, Urizar et al. [ 89 ] suggests that specific coping strategies should be addressed for mothers based on family constraints, including social support, problem solving, reframing cognitions, and strategies to balance motherhood with the need to care for oneself. Relapse prevention counseling is an example of a technique that incorporates stress management [ 331 , 338 ] and is a recommended intervention for stressed populations [ 184 ].

The content of these programs should be comprehensive. Identifying high-risk situations ahead of time is an important strategy [ 331 , 339 ], and those who can predict stressors are typically better able to diminish losses potentially associated with them [ 340 ]. Teaching stressed individuals the importance of exercise as a method to emotionally cope, plus the problem-focused skills to cope with stress aside from exercise, is a dual priority [ 119 , 341 ]. As exercise is a complex behavior for the newly active, requiring much planning, resources should be put in place to assist the stressed individual with the creation of primary and contingency plans. On this note, interventions that are more flexible and ‘user-friendly’ are necessary to help clients re-engage with stress-derailed PA regimens [ 154 ]. Much has been made of the stress-impulsivity connection and, consequently, a full complement of self-regulation strategies would likely be useful [ 129 , 282 , 342 ]. Simply continuing to exercise on a regular basis is a method to build self-control [ 88 ], and it is difficult to obviate well-established and reinforcing habits. Lastly, and perhaps most important, there is evidence that combining an exercise intervention with stress management can result in increased exercise during times of stress or prevent relapse [ 149 , 279 , 343 ]. Such practice has been successfully employed with alcohol and other drug treatments [ 344 , 345 ]. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is a highly effective technique to promote stress reduction, and enhancing aspects of this program, such as mindful walking, may be an ideal avenue for intervention [ 346 ]. In summary, creating interventions to target stress and coping skills may help to facilitate greater PA and, ultimately, improved health outcomes.

4.3 Exercise as a Stressor

From a practical standpoint, exercise and the associated actions required to accomplish it may simply be burdens or minor stressors themselves. For many people, structured exercise is highly inconvenient (“one more thing to do” [ 189 , 347 ]) during periods of greater strain [ 348 ]. As an example, women who work long hours feel unable to exercise due to many demands on their time, interference from family obligations, and other barriers [ 196 ]. Similarly, teenagers in the midst of household conflict find it difficult to plan for sports participation [ 171 ]. It has been noted that planning for exercise but then missing it due to stress-related circumstances may degrade exercise self-efficacy and add further frustration and dissatisfaction [ 159 ]. Langlie [ 349 ] found that during times of stress, individuals feel a lack of control and perceive maintaining health behaviors as costly. Consequently, for those who view exercise as a disruption, an inconvenience or another demand on their time, it is not a stretch to predict that exercise will decrease with stress. This may be particularly true when starting a new exercise routine [ 204 , 347 ]. Indeed, Holmes and Rahe [ 330 ] suggest that any perturbation of one’s normal daily routine constitutes a stressor. Several studies have considered the potential social stress of PA participation [ 350 - 354 ]. For instance, inactive people are more sensitive to criticism of their bodyweight and fitness, more readily embarrassed, and may derive less affective pleasure and reinforcement from exercise [ 355 ], all of which may result in exercise avoidance, particularly when already in a state of mental stress. The perceived threats of comparison and competition, as well as the anticipation of an exhaustive effort may be much less tolerated under these conditions [ 122 , 356 ]. All of these sources of additional stress should be considered in intervention design. Unfortunately, making one’s PA routine more convenient, such as exercising at home, does not necessarily mean that it will result in better adherence to exercise regimens. For instance, King and associates [ 184 , 204 ] found that life events equally degraded adherence to a home-based or class-based exercise program.

The above discussion should impress upon the clinician and researcher that exercise is itself a mental [ 85 , 356 - 361 ] and physical stressor [ 362 - 366 ]. In short, the stress of exercise may in some circumstances interact with psychological stress to dampen PA behavior. Indeed, exercise might by typified as a self-inflicted stressor, often intentionally undertaken with a goal of attaining health and fitness. While such experiences are generally considered adaptive, not all outcomes are positive in nature. From a physical standpoint, for instance, there is always risk of injury [ 309 , 367 ], which is magnified under conditions of stress [ 368 ] and may result in missed exercise participation. Exercise undertaken in unaccustomed volumes can elevate glucocorticoids and stunt physical processes, such as neurogenesis [ 369 ]. Ultimately, at very high levels exercise may result in deleterious outcomes, such as unexplained underperformance syndrome. This outcome may be exacerbated by the experience of mental stressors and, likewise, may result in additional sensations of stress [ 370 ]. Indeed, increased exercise over a period of days or weeks can contribute to negative shifts in one’s mood [ 371 ] and increased perceived stress [ 372 ]. A recent study found that poor muscular recovery was associated with self reports of chronic stress [ 29 ]. As sensations related to muscle damage likely result in impaired PA [ 373 ], it is possible that stress may affect exercise behavior by magnifying unpleasant sensations associated with exercise.

4.4 Significance of Literature Finding a Positive Association Between Stress and PA

Findings that stress may elicit increases in PA behavior should not be considered happenstance and may explain studies with null findings [ 17 ]. Castro and associates [ 145 ] found that women who were anxious at baseline had better adherence to an exercise program over 12 months, and a similar result was found for colorectal cancer patients [ 264 ]. Johnson-Kozlow et al. [ 279 ] implemented an exercise intervention for a group of students in which stress management was a central feature. It should not be surprising then that with burgeoning stress men increased PA in this study. Health behaviors, such as exercise or recreational park use, may actually improve after a major life event, such as the death of a spouse with Alzheimer’s, simply because barriers for behavior are removed [ 374 , 375 ]. Moreover, such observations are consistent with theories that predict changes in behavior in either direction with stress [ 183 , 330 , 376 , 377 ]. For instance, resiliency researchers have long stressed that adversity may spur some individuals to higher levels of functioning [ 376 , 377 ]. Seigel et al. [ 183 ] suggests a nomenclature for these disparate responses, referring to increased PA with stress as behavioral activation and weakened PA as behavioral inhibition , responses that appear to vary by traits of the individual. The rebound hypothesis of stress and PA proposed by Griffin et al. [ 191 ] posits that stress can result in a degraded PA response followed within days or weeks by a compensatory uptick in PA. Specifically, these researchers speculate that people may overdo healthy behaviors, such as exercise, to compensate for poor attention to health during the stressful period.

In the face of stress, one may elect to obviate feelings of displeasure by engaging in exercise, a form of emotion-focused coping [ 62 , 168 , 378 ]. Indeed, exercise may result in enhanced feelings of pleasure and is widely accepted as a tool for stress management [ 118 , 201 , 379 - 381 ]. Stetson et al. [ 189 ] found that 69 % of their sample of women exercised to relieve stress. Qualitative research indicates that individuals will use low to moderate intensity exercise (i.e., walking) as a method to regulate emotions [ 173 , 293 ]. Interestingly, despite the expectation that PA will lessen displeasure, exercise enjoyment appears to be affected during weeks of stress [ 189 ]. Nevertheless, people who believe that exercise is a useful method for stress reduction are more likely to engage in a moderate or greater level of exercise [ 225 , 318 ]. Those who exercise to cope with stress report higher exercise behavior than those who do not cope by exercising [ 188 ]. Stress management as a motive for exercise has been found for several populations [ 178 , 382 - 386 ]. However, a large sample of highly active fitness enthusiasts reported that stress management ranked far below other sources of motivation, such as exercise enjoyment [ 387 ].

These issues decry the general lack of understanding of the relationship between coping with stress and PA. Exercise behavior declines on days when individuals use more emotion-focused coping [ 201 ], but in general the use of positive coping behaviors is related to greater PA [ 250 , 300 ]. The general coping style of the individual may account for these differences, as people with rigid coping styles tend to increase PA behavior with increased stress [ 280 ], although this finding is challenged by other data [ 150 ]. Moos and Schaefer [ 388 ] state that “Among self-efficacious individuals, engaging in PA can be described as a task-oriented way of dealing with stressful events using a behavioral-approach coping style. Alternatively, engaging in PA may be used to avoid life stressors among less self-efficacious individuals.” This suggests that exercise may serve to both deal with and steer away from stress, and the strategy utilized may vary by one’s self-efficacy for exercise. This may be particularly salient for those who are exercise dependent [ 389 , 390 ] and for those who compensate for stress-induced overeating by exercising [ 183 , 391 - 393 ]. These phenomena add an extra layer of complexity to any analysis of stress and exercise and may account for weak relationships observed by many studies.

4.5 Limitations of the Literature: Methodological Considerations

Several limitations in the stress literature have been discerned by this review, particularly as identified by the quality assessment rating (Electronic Supplementary Material, Appendix 1). The most obvious is the limited amount of experimental evidence. The use of control groups should be utilized, as changes in PA are frequently due to other factors, such as a change in seasons [ 331 , 394 ]. Examination and holiday stressors coincide with more averse weather in many latitudes, which is perhaps the greatest limitation in this area of research. Cross-sectional studies cannot provide indication of the direction of influence. Does stress impact exercise directly, or do inactive individuals self-select more stressful environments [ 170 ]? Such a possibility implies that other factors may be responsible for the association. Nevertheless, more than 50 studies in this review utilized a prospective design, which allays some concern.

Apart from issues of design, there are also issues with measurement. First, stress may impact the recall of exercise behavior as opposed to exercise behavior itself, with activity being over- or understated [ 395 ]. Objective measures of PA, therefore, are greatly needed, and only a few cross-sectional studies have employed such markers [ 249 , 258 ]. Furthermore, most subjective measures do not capture the full complexity of the behavior, including occupational and commuting activity [ 308 ]. To illustrate this point, Fredman et al. [ 254 ] found that caregivers have greater self-reported total PA than non-caregivers but lower leisure time PA. Moreover, many papers do not inquire about exercise intensity, although it is equivocal as to whether intensity is impacted to the same degree as frequency or duration [ 17 , 229 , 241 , 251 ]. It is possible that an individual may shift intensity as the priority for fitness, typically achieved with greater exercise effort, gives way to a greater emphasis on stress management [ 173 ]. When athletes are specifically asked what mental factors prevent them from giving 100 % effort in practice, they typically list life events, school demands, and other stressors [ 396 ]. Lastly, it is unfortunate that nearly 50 % of prospective studies did not utilize pre-tested PA/exercise measures, with some relying on simple dichotomous measures of exercise behavior [ 210 , 219 , 263 ].

The measurement of stress appears to play an important role in the stress–exercise literature. Measures of stress varied greatly in the studies reviewed, which parallels the multiplicity of stress definitions employed. Studies in this analysis were divided nearly evenly on whether they focused on subjective (i.e., perceived) or objective (e.g., life events, daily hassles) measures of stress, and several studies have also specifically focused on chronically stressed populations [ 173 , 186 , 190 , 196 , 251 ]. Studies employing measures of life stress sometimes include both positive and negative life events with no differentiation [ 280 ], whereas others have focused exclusively on negative experiences [ 184 ]. Any challenging experience will tax the human organism at varying degrees, but many studies have favored a summation of life events without considering the weighted impact or magnitude of each individual event [ 25 , 184 ]. Exercise has been observed to serve as coping during transient stressors [ 168 , 397 , 398 ] and even when experiencing a major life event [ 175 , 184 ]. Other dimensions of the stress process may also be salient, such as the predictability of the event or an individual’s perceived ability to cope with the stressor [ 36 ]. One must also consider the type (e.g., social, financial) and controllability of stress, all of which may influence whether exercise is utilized as a coping device. On days when stress is perceived as controllable, exercise increases [ 201 ]. Animal models demonstrate that different types of stressors (i.e., social defeat vs. open field stress) result in either habituation or non-habituation of PA [ 399 ]. Indeed, social stress resulted in a significant decline in PA amongst children in the only experimental study to date [ 193 ]. Lastly, it is important to note that no research specifically focused on cumulative adversity, a construct associated with many health behaviors [ 125 , 128 ].

A tertiary area of concerns lies in temporal aspects of stress research. From a measurement perspective, assessments of stress and PA are often mismatched, with one measure inquiring about stress over a given period (e.g., the last month; Perceived Stress Scale [PSS]) and the other inquiring about PA over a different period of time (e.g., the last year, Modifiable Activity Questionnaire [MAQ]) [ 124 , 191 , 259 , 286 , 295 ]. Prospective studies, while an improvement over cross-sectional ones, do not always gauge stress and PA at each time point [ 268 , 279 ]. This is important to determine bi-directional associations of stress and PA. Diary studies have provided considerable improvement in this respect, while also being less affected by stress-related memory deficits [ 17 , 189 ]. Most research has failed to look at relationships in both a concurrent/contemporaneous and time-lagged manner [ 245 ]. While it is possible that stress has a weak relationship with PA at any given point of time, a much stronger relationship likely exists between stress and (a) PA at a future time, (b) PA change scores [ 17 , 124 , 189 ], and/or (c) more qualitative measures including exercise adoption, maintenance [ 184 , 199 ] and intervention adherence. The Physical Activity Maintenance (PAM) model [ 199 ] argues that stress most relates to relapse, and a plethora of evidence looking at other health behaviors would support this notion [ 129 ]. A cross-lagged analysis would help to determine which direction of influence is stronger between stress and PA, but only one report has undertaken such an analysis [ 20 ].

Sample characteristics are germane to the study of stress. It is frequently difficult to recruit truly stressed subjects for research studies, which results in a response or selection bias [ 400 ]. Consequently, a constrained range or low level of stress scores (i.e., not enough variability in stress) may obscure any true effect [ 191 , 275 , 303 ]. Those who drop out of studies tend to have higher stress and anxiety, which could also mask any potential effects [ 188 ]. Several studies finding an inverse trend of a stress–PA association have been underpowered [ 277 ], while others are overpowered, detecting trivial associations [ 260 , 268 , 270 , 272 , 316 ]. Studies with large samples of inactive participants (or conversely all active subjects) may not have enough variability in exercise measures to detect an effect [ 273 ].

Finally, it should be noted that this review has limitations. Only three databases were searched. Moreover, the search in PubMed was truncated and did not extend before the year 2000. However, these are not likely substantive issues considering (a) the numerous studies discovered; (b) the retrieval of few unique investigations in successive database searches; and (c) the linear distribution of papers across time ( Fig. 2 ). Additionally, this is the first review of its kind; therefore, this analysis adds considerable insight into an area that has produced a large quantity of data. Despite this abundance, the current body of work has not been featured well in reviews summarizing psychosocial influences on PA, necessitating the current report [ 153 - 160 ].

4.6 Future Directions

Possibilities abound for future research in this area. Currently, evidence demonstrating the efficacy of an exercise–stress management intervention is scant. Nevertheless, initial reports are promising [ 192 ]. Interventions could be optimized if stress–PA relationships could be titrated. For instance, Oman and King [ 184 ] discerned that an increase in major life events, specifically from three to four, did not result in a proportional decline in exercise adherence. This type of research represents an important area of future inquiry and could be coordinated to additionally identify the factors that potentially protect one from, or make one vulnerable to, the effects of stress. Risk factors might include race/ethnicity, family background or individual characteristics, such as lifetime adversity and disadvantaged experiences [ 34 , 35 ]. These latter two constructs are also indicators of stress, which serve as a reminder that stress instrumentation could be enhanced in future research by incorporating a lifespan perspective. Triangulating self-report measures with participant interviews and corroborating evidence from persons close to study participants would provide a strong advancement to stress measurement [ 401 ].

Apart from one experiment [ 193 ], there has been a lack of studies manipulating stress to assess the effect of such experiences on PA behaviors. It must be noted, however, that experimental exposure to stress is difficult, if not unethical, to implement. Measuring PA opportunistically during periods of objectively rated low and high stress, such as final examinations or other naturalistic stressors, provides stronger evidence [ 185 , 187 , 192 ]. The model demonstrated by Stults-Kolehmainen and Bartholomew [ 29 ], in which populations are screened for both very low and very high levels of chronic perceived stress, is an example of a quasi-experimental design that could be employed. Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) is one technique to measure stress and PA in real time, resulting in less vulnerability to stress-related failures in the recall of behavior and emotion [ 154 , 265 , 402 ]. Prospective studies should sample more frequently to minimize the effects of stress on memory and cognition, factors that in themselves may moderate the stress and exercise relationship [ 403 ].

These investigations may help to describe shifts in the relationship as individuals progress from sedentary behavior to exercise adoption, maintenance, and periods of relapse. The area of exercise habituation seems very promising [ 17 , 183 ], as it is likely that novice exercisers are more susceptible to the effects of impulses, lack self-control, and are not resilient to the physical, emotional, and social stressors of exercise itself [ 351 ]. Furthermore, as individuals habituate to exercise there are likely concomitant changes in fitness, a potential moderator with minimal emphasis thus far [ 229 ]. Other moderators may be genetic (i.e., polymorphisms in genes regulating energy expenditure), physiological (e.g., adrenal sensitivity, muscle activation), health-related (e.g., illness, symptoms), personality-related (e.g., conscientiousness, neuroticism, perfectionism, type B, sensation-seeking [ 141 , 142 , 269 , 404 - 407 ]), social/environmental [ 232 ], and related to coping style, though few studies have measured the extent to which individuals use exercise to cope with stress. Researchers may look to the nutrition literature as a similar bifurcation occurs when individuals are exposed to stressors: either more consumption or less or even fasting [ 168 , 408 ]. This work has revealed mechanisms underlying the stress and caloric intake relationship, such as cortisol reactivity [ 134 , 409 - 411 ]. Experimental models in this area are more sophisticated, which points to a need in the current literature reviewed. Hopefully this progress will help to determine the individual factors that may hasten declines in health-promoting behavior when stressed or, in a few cases, spur more activity.

The above discussion underscores the central need for additional models and a theoretical framework that describe the non-linear, bi-directional and dynamic nature of stress and PA relationships [ 20 , 290 ]. At this time, theoretical models of stress and behavior are largely lacking or are specialized to particular contexts (e.g., worksites, urban life) [ 170 , 200 ]. Links between stress, coping style, perceptions of energy and fatigue, energy expenditure (including spontaneous PA and non-exercise activity thermogenesis [NEAT]) and metabolism, amongst other factors (e.g., conscientiousness) should be integrated into conceptual models explaining obesity and physical health. Models specifically examining recovery from stressors [ 29 , 170 , 282 ] and sedentary behavior [ 170 , 173 , 193 , 195 , 209 ] would be useful, as stress is linked to these outcomes. Finally, it should be noted that psychosocial stress and exercise interact during PA itself, a third area of inquiry that will likely inform the complex confounding of these two factors [ 350 , 412 , 413 ].

5 Conclusion

This review is the only manuscript, to the best of our knowledge, that has attempted to synthesize the diverse literature on the association of stress and PA/exercise in the reverse direction of influence. This emerging focus stands in contrast to the vast number of studies that have almost exclusively emphasized the anxiolytic and anti-depressant effects of exercise. The current analysis concludes that stress and PA are associated in a temporal manner. More specifically, the experience of stress influences PA, and the great majority of studies indicate an inverse relationship between these constructs. In other words, stress impedes individuals’ efforts to be more physically active, just as it negatively influences other health behaviors, such as smoking, alcohol, and drug use. Interestingly, a smaller number of studies suggest a positive association between stress and PA. While seemingly contradictory, these data are consistent with theories that predict changes in behavior in either direction with stress. The utility of exercise as a coping or stress management technique is notable and may explain this finding. Resiliency research suggests that some individuals thrive under conditions of stress; therefore, future research is needed to understand why some individuals are immune to changes in PA in the face of stress while others become inactive. Few studies employ rigorous experimental designs, which would strengthen this area of inquiry. Nevertheless, available prospective data is of moderate to high quality. Data identifying moderators of the relationship between stress and exercise would help to improve the design of interventions targeted towards at-risk populations, such as older adults. Future empirical research in this area could be guided by a theory of stress and PA, which is lacking at this time.

Supplementary Material

Acknowledgments.

National Institute of Health grants UL1-DE019586 and PL1-DA024859 supported the preparation of this manuscript. The authors would like to extend appreciation to the late Rafer Lutz, Ph.D. for his thorough and thoughtful critiques of this manuscript just before his passing in 2012. Dr. Lutz’s work made a special contribution to advances in this literature.

Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s40279-013-0090-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Home > USC Columbia > Public Health, Arnold School of > SPH_EXERCISE_SCIENCE > Exercise Science Theses and Dissertations

Exercise Science Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2023 2023.

Leveraging Church Environments to Promote Rural Physical Activity and Healthy Eating , Kelsey Rothera Day

The Role of Environmental Context in Supporting Children’s 24- Hour Movement Behaviors; A Positive Deviance Perspective , Roddrick Dugger

Effects of Caffeine on Measures of Clinical Outcome and Recovery Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Adolescents , Jacob Michael Eade

Sleep, Physical Activity, and Sedentary Time in the First Year Postpartum , Erin Elizabeth Kishman

Mechanisms of Social Stress Susceptibility and Resilience in Female Rats , Brittany Sara Pate

Predictors of Driving Performance Post-Stroke , Halle Elise Prine

A Randomized, Placebo Controlled, Double-Blind, Crossover Study to Evaluate the Effects of Two Novel Hydration Beverage Formulas on Rehydration in Healthy Adults , Nathaniel David Rhoades

Effect of Action Selection Demands on the Execution of Goal-Directed Reaches , James Garrison Riedy

An Examination of Inter-Limb Functional Asymmetry After a Fatiguing Bout of Exercise in High Level Soccer Players , Nestor Urrea

Causes and Consequences of the Risk of Generalizability Biases in Health Behavioral Interventions , Lauren von Klinggraeff

Exercise and Mental Health Over the Course of a Semester , Jamie Alexis Whitney

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Molecular Architecture of Cardiometabolic Responses to Regular Exercise , Jacob L. Barber

Relationships Among Sleep, Physical Activity, and Weight Status in Children and Adolescents , Agnes Bucko

Self Reported Cardiovascular Health and Health Behaviors in Women Veterans , Seth Byland

Sports Nutrition- and Strength and Conditioning-based Interventions to Bolster Health and Human Performance in Male and Female Tactical Personnel , Harry Paul Cintineo

Psychophysiological Biomarkers of Concussion Recovery , Adam Todd Harrison

The Effects of Exercise Training on Cholesterol Efflux Capacity in the HERITAGE Family Study , Joshua Adam Hawkins

Physical Activity and Stress Between American Students and Asian International Students at the University of South Carolina , Hao Lei

Effects of Positive Social Comparative Feedback During Practice on Motor Sequence Learning, Performance Expectancies, and Resting State Connectivity , Allison Foster Lewis

Using a Multi-Direction Reaching Approach to Investigate Fitts’ Law and the Effect of Attentional Focus on Motor Learning , Charles R. Smith

Impact of a Novel Marine Algae Supplement on Inflammatory and Immune Response After High-Intensity Exercise , Caroline Sara Vincenty

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

Clinical Determinants of VO 2 max Response to Endurance Training: HERITAGE Family Study , Emanuel Ayala

The Influence of ADHD on Concussion in NCAA College Athletes , Brett Steven Gunn

The Relationship of Structured Environments With Children’s Body Composition and Obesogenic Behaviors , Ethan T. Hunt

Racial Disparities in Gestational Weight Gain, Body Mass Index, And Physical Activity During Pregnancy and After Delivery , Marcey Acacia Jiles

Strengthening the Evidence-Base of Youth Nutrition Programs: A Three Part Approach , Rebecca Kyryliuk

Multiple Processes Predict Motor Learning and Impairments After a Stroke , Christopher Michael Perry

Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior During and After Pregnancy and Postpartum Weight Retention , Kaitlyn Taylor Ramey

The Influence of Sport Participation on Physical Activity in Youth , Emily R. Shull

Examination of Energy Needs and Female Athlete Triad Components in Competitive Cheerleaders , Allison Smith

Performance of the Wrist-worn Actigraph GT3X + in Measuring Physical Activity in Older Women , Michal Talley Smith

Effects of Basketball Exercise Simulation Test (BEST) On Landing Mechanics in Active Females , Madison Treece

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

The Association of Exercise Training Modalities with Circulating Branched Chain Amino Acid and Ketone Body levels in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes , Ryan Andrew Flynn

Examination of Daily Steps in People With Parkinson’s Disease & Stroke: Two Steps Forward , Reed Handlery

Examination of Emergency Medical Services Activations for Sport- Related Injuries , Rebecca Marie Hirschhorn

Sex-Based Differences in Concussion Outcomes Among Adolescents and Young Adults , Jacob James Michael Kay

Piloting a Smartphone-Based Sedentary Behavior Reduction Intervention for Adults With Overweight or Obesity: Take a STAND 4 Health , Chelsea Larsen

Integrating Survivors of Stroke Into Cardiac Rehabilitation , Elizabeth Wherley Regan

Lipoprotein Discordance: Associations With Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome, and Response to Exercise , Jonathan Joseph Pulama Kupaianaha Ruiz-Ramie

Characterizing Patterns of Adherence to Physical Activity Goals in Behavioral Weight Control , Melissa Lee Stansbury

Mental Health Prevalence and Biofeedback Intervention for Student- Athletes , Samantha Rose Weber

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Leveraging For-Cause Physical Activity Events for Physical Activity Promotion: An Investigation Using Self-Determination Theory , John A. Bernhart

Effect of TRB3 on Skeletal Muscle Mass Regulation and Exercise-Induced Adaptation , Ran Hee Choi

The Role of AMPK in the Regulation of Skeletal Muscle Proteostasis During Cancer Cachexia , Dennis K. Fix

Identification of Factors Contributing to Musculoskeletal Injuries in Military Basic Trainees , Amy Fraley Hand

Effects of Spinal Manipulation on Brain Activation in Individuals with Chronic Low Back Pain , Max K. Jordon

The Effect of Patient Financial Liability on Physical Therapy Utilization and Patient Reported Outcomes for Patients With Low Back Pain: An Instrumental Variable Analysis , Adam D. Lutz

Physical Activity of Preschoolers with Developmental Disabilities and Delays , Michaela A. Schenkelberg

Reproducibility and The Effects of Exercise on The Endurance Index , Michael Dean Smith, JR.

Differential Cholinergic Modulation of Prelimbic and Thalamic Input to the Basolateral Amygdala , Sarah Catherine Tryon

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

The Effects of Exercise Training on Cardiovascular-related Circulating MicroRNAs , Jacob Luther Barber

Neighborhood Socioeconomic Environment and Its Influence on Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Physical Activity in Youth , Morgan N. Clennin

Calibration of an Accelerometer for Measurement of Very Light Intensity Physical Activity in Children , Joseph S. Gorab

The Effects Of Exercise Mode And Intensity On Energy Expenditure During And After Exercise In Resistance Trained Males , George Lewis Grieve

Enhancing Dancing: Examining The Potency Of A Combined Action Observation And Brain Stimulation Intervention , Melissa B. Kolar

The Effects Of Modifiable Lifestyle Behaviors On Lipoprotein Particle Concentration And Size , Ryan R. Porter

Cortical Damage and Disconnection Contribute to Post-Stroke Sensorimotor Impairment , Shafagh Yazdani

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Patterns Of Participation And Performance In Youth Baseball Players , Amanda Arnold

The Effect of Energy-Matched Exercise Intensity on Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Motor Learning , Jessica F. Baird

The Role of Exercise Dose on Ghrelin Concentration in Postmenopausal Women , Kimberly Bowyer

Children’s Obesogenic Behaviors During Summer Versus School , Keith Brazendale

The Effects of a Game Simulation on Muscle Activation and Knee Kinematics in Females , Geoffrey Collins

The Regulation of Glycoprotein130 Dependent Inflammatory Cytokines one Basal and Mechanical Stimuli Induced Protein Synthesis in Myotubes and Skeletal Muscles , Song Gao

Muscle Inflammatory Signaling Regulates Eccentric Contraction-Induced Protein Synthesis during Cancer Cachexia , Justin Perry Hardee

The Addition Of A Concurrent Bimanual Task Influences Postural Sway And Walking Speed Performance And Prioritization Across All Ages , Derek Matthew Liuzzo

Maternal Physical Activity and Cardiorespiratory Fitness During Pregnancy and its Relation to Infant Size , Samantha M. McDonald

Identifying Associations between Religious Commitment and Preventive Health Behaviors in a Southeastern Rural County , Nathan A. Peters

The Association Of Changes In Cardiorespiratory Fitness With Changes In Cardiometabolic Risk Factors , Leanna Marie Ross

The Nutrition Assistance Landscape in Afterschool Programs: Understanding the Gap between Research, Policy, and Practice , Falon Elizabet Tilley

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

The Effects Of Exercise On Sleep Parameters Among Older Women , Charity B. Breneman

Exploring Children’s Physical Activity Levels Through Structure and Measurement , Jessica L. Chandler

Comparison of the Effects of Energy Flux on Metabolic Conditions and Satiety in Young Adults , Molly Madison DeMello

Role Of Altered Gut Microbiota In Tumor Development, Mucus Production And Inflammation In APC MIN/+ Mouse Model , Kamaljeet Kaur

Exploratory Analysis Of PTSD Severity And Objective Measures Of Physical Activity Among Combat Veterans , Danny O. Sauceda

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Environmental and Policy Assessment – Measurement Issues and Implications , Rahma Jamea Yousef Ajja

Metabotropic Receptor Modulation of Kainate Receptors in the Hippocampus , C'iana Patrice Cooper

The Recovery of Gut Barrier Function With Selenium Rich Diet in Acute DSS-Induced Colitis , Sarah Depaepe

The Role of Ovarian Function in the Progression of Cachexia in the APC MIN/+ Mouse , Kimbell Louise Hetzler

Factors Influencing Level of Implementation of Physical Activity Interventions in Youth-Serving Organizations , Yuen Yan Lau

Correlations Between White Matter Integrity, Structural Connectivity, And Upper and Lower Extremity Motor Function in Individuals With Chronic Stroke , Denise M. Peters

Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Body Fatness Effect on Submaximal Systolic Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Prognosis among Young Adults , Vivek Kumar Prasad

Adiponectin and Selenium Rich Diet can act as a Complimentary Medicine in the Treatment of Intestinal and Chronic Inflammation Induced Colon Cancer , Arpit Saxena

Novel Drug 2-benzoyl-3-phenyl 6,7-dichloroquinoxaline 1,4-dioxide Induces Colon Cancer Cell Apoptosis Through HIF-1α Pathway , Alexander-Jacques Theodore Sougiannis

Patterns of Sedentary Behavior and Association with Health Risks Among African American Adults , Tatiana Y. Warren-Jones

Patient and Provider Perceptions of Weight Gain, Physical Activity, and Nutrition in Pregnancy , Kara M. Whitaker

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

The Effects of Exercise Training on Cognitive Reserve and Cognitive Function in Healthy Older Women , Katie Marie Becofsky

The Effects of Arthritis Foundation’s “Walk With Ease” Program on Cognitive Function , Ryan S. Falck

Weight-Gain and Energy Balance , Benjamin Thomas Gordon

ROLE OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION ON LIVER FUNCTION DURING CACHEXIA PROGRESSION IN THE APC MIN/+ MOUSE MODEL , Aditi Narsale

Longitudinal Evaluations of Objectively Measured Physical Activity: Capturing the Full Spectrum of Duration and Intensity , Amanda E. Paluch

The Regulation of Skeletal Muscle Mass and Mitochondrial Biogenesis by gp130/STAT3 Signaling during Cancer Cachexia , Melissa Puppa

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

The Mechanisms of Posterior Shoulder Tightness and Effectiveness of Manual Therapy , Lane Brooks Bailey

Optimal Cooperation In Joint Action Tasks , Scott Michael Blanchette

Measuring Organizational Member Involvement In Physical Activity Coalitions Across the United States , Daniel Benjamin Bornstein

Outsmarting the Brain: Augmenting Motor Training with Non-invasive Brain Stimulation in Order to Facilitate Plasticity-Dependent, Functional Improvement within the Motor Cortex , Raymond Joseph Butts

The Association of Physical Fitness With Psychological Health Outcomes In Soldiers During Army Basic Combat Training , Shannon K. Crowley

An Investigation into the Influence of Dietary Saturated Fat and Quercetin Supplementation on Adiposity, Macrophage Behavior, Inflammation, and Non-Alcoholic Fatty-Liver Disease , Reilly Enos

The Effect of Radiation on Myofiber Properties in Mouse Skeletal Muscle , Dennis K. Fix

Exploring the Role of Culture and Race In Stroke Rehabilitation Disparities , Jennifaye Verdina Greene

Classroom Exercise Breaks and Educational Outcomes in Elementary School Students , Erin Kaye Howie

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How to Write a Strong Thesis Statement: 4 Steps + Examples

What’s Covered:

What is the purpose of a thesis statement, writing a good thesis statement: 4 steps, common pitfalls to avoid, where to get your essay edited for free.

When you set out to write an essay, there has to be some kind of point to it, right? Otherwise, your essay would just be a big jumble of word salad that makes absolutely no sense. An essay needs a central point that ties into everything else. That main point is called a thesis statement, and it’s the core of any essay or research paper.

You may hear about Master degree candidates writing a thesis, and that is an entire paper–not to be confused with the thesis statement, which is typically one sentence that contains your paper’s focus. 

Read on to learn more about thesis statements and how to write them. We’ve also included some solid examples for you to reference.

Typically the last sentence of your introductory paragraph, the thesis statement serves as the roadmap for your essay. When your reader gets to the thesis statement, they should have a clear outline of your main point, as well as the information you’ll be presenting in order to either prove or support your point. 

The thesis statement should not be confused for a topic sentence , which is the first sentence of every paragraph in your essay. If you need help writing topic sentences, numerous resources are available. Topic sentences should go along with your thesis statement, though.

Since the thesis statement is the most important sentence of your entire essay or paper, it’s imperative that you get this part right. Otherwise, your paper will not have a good flow and will seem disjointed. That’s why it’s vital not to rush through developing one. It’s a methodical process with steps that you need to follow in order to create the best thesis statement possible.

Step 1: Decide what kind of paper you’re writing

When you’re assigned an essay, there are several different types you may get. Argumentative essays are designed to get the reader to agree with you on a topic. Informative or expository essays present information to the reader. Analytical essays offer up a point and then expand on it by analyzing relevant information. Thesis statements can look and sound different based on the type of paper you’re writing. For example:

• Argumentative: The United States needs a viable third political party to decrease bipartisanship, increase options, and help reduce corruption in government.
• Informative: The Libertarian party has thrown off elections before by gaining enough support in states to get on the ballot and by taking away crucial votes from candidates.
• Analytical: An analysis of past presidential elections shows that while third party votes may have been the minority, they did affect the outcome of the elections in 2020, 2016, and beyond.

Step 2: Figure out what point you want to make

Once you know what type of paper you’re writing, you then need to figure out the point you want to make with your thesis statement, and subsequently, your paper. In other words, you need to decide to answer a question about something, such as:

• What impact did reality TV have on American society?
• How has the musical Hamilton affected perception of American history?
• Why do I want to major in [chosen major here]?

If you have an argumentative essay, then you will be writing about an opinion. To make it easier, you may want to choose an opinion that you feel passionate about so that you’re writing about something that interests you. For example, if you have an interest in preserving the environment, you may want to choose a topic that relates to that. 

If you’re writing your college essay and they ask why you want to attend that school, you may want to have a main point and back it up with information, something along the lines of:

“Attending Harvard University would benefit me both academically and professionally, as it would give me a strong knowledge base upon which to build my career, develop my network, and hopefully give me an advantage in my chosen field.”

Step 3: Determine what information you’ll use to back up your point

Once you have the point you want to make, you need to figure out how you plan to back it up throughout the rest of your essay. Without this information, it will be hard to either prove or argue the main point of your thesis statement. If you decide to write about the Hamilton example, you may decide to address any falsehoods that the writer put into the musical, such as:

“The musical Hamilton, while accurate in many ways, leaves out key parts of American history, presents a nationalist view of founding fathers, and downplays the racism of the times.”

Once you’ve written your initial working thesis statement, you’ll then need to get information to back that up. For example, the musical completely leaves out Benjamin Franklin, portrays the founding fathers in a nationalist way that is too complimentary, and shows Hamilton as a staunch abolitionist despite the fact that his family likely did own slaves. 

Step 4: Revise and refine your thesis statement before you start writing

Read through your thesis statement several times before you begin to compose your full essay. You need to make sure the statement is ironclad, since it is the foundation of the entire paper. Edit it or have a peer review it for you to make sure everything makes sense and that you feel like you can truly write a paper on the topic. Once you’ve done that, you can then begin writing your paper.

When writing a thesis statement, there are some common pitfalls you should avoid so that your paper can be as solid as possible. Make sure you always edit the thesis statement before you do anything else. You also want to ensure that the thesis statement is clear and concise. Don’t make your reader hunt for your point. Finally, put your thesis statement at the end of the first paragraph and have your introduction flow toward that statement. Your reader will expect to find your statement in its traditional spot.

If you’re having trouble getting started, or need some guidance on your essay, there are tools available that can help you. CollegeVine offers a free peer essay review tool where one of your peers can read through your essay and provide you with valuable feedback. Getting essay feedback from a peer can help you wow your instructor or college admissions officer with an impactful essay that effectively illustrates your point.

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Home > SAHP > PT > ETD-PT

Theses, Dissertations and Projects - Physical Therapy

Theses/dissertations from 2024 2024.

The Association of Acute Stress and Single Leg Balance , Theodore W. Gehrig III

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

High-Intensity Interval Training and Biological Age , Trevor Lohman

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

The Impact of Intraneural Facilitation Therapy on Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy , Kyan Zhra-Sahba Alnajafi

The Influence of Strength and Mobility on Lumbar Biomechanics During Lifting , Christopher S. Patterson

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Spine Kinematics and Muscle Activities in Non-specific Chronic Low Back Pain Subgroups in Sitting , Mansoor Ahmed Alameri

Relationship between Balance and Physical Activity in Subjects with Non-Specific Chronic Low Back Pain , Muhsen B. Alsufiany

Does self-evaluation and education in students change attitudes and beliefs towards Weight Stigma? , Henry A. Garcia

Effects of Head Motion on Balance in Middle-Aged and Young Adults with Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Ammar E. Hafiz

Effect of Pediatric Ear Infections on Postural Stability , Ohud A. Sabir

Biomechanics and Postural Control Characteristics in Low Back Pain Subgroups During Dynamic Task , Amjad Shallan

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Effect of Adding Stretching Techniques to Standardized Intervention on Nonspecific Mechanical Neck Pain , Saad S. Alfawaz

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Effects of Head Motion on Postural Stability in Participants with Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Abdulaziz A. Albalwi

Relationship between Vestibular System, Vision, Anxiety, and Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Ahmad A. Alharbi

The Effects of Frequent Smartphone Use on Children’s Upper Posture and Pulmonary Function , Asma Alonazi

The Effects of Wearing Headscarves on Cervical Spine Proprioception and Range of Motion , Samiah Alqabbani

A Comparison of Neuromuscular Control between Subjects with and without Chronic Ankle Instability , Hatem Jaber

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

Effects of Adjustments to Wheelchair Seat to Back Support Angle on Head, Neck, and Shoulder Postures , Afnan M. Alkhateeb

Effect of Jet Lag on Postural Stability , Faisal M. Al Mubarak

Effect of Heavy Lifting with a Head Strap on the Pelvic Floor across the Menstrual Cycle , Yvonne Biswokarma

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Physical Therapy after Triangular Fibrocartilage Injuries and Ulnar Wrist Pain , Mohamed A. Abdelmegeed

The Effect of Cervical Muscle Fatigue on Postural Stability during Immersion Virtual Reality , Mazen M. Alqahtani

The Effects of a Novel Therapeutic Intervention in Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy Patients , Adel M. Alshahrani

Cross-cultural Adaption and Psychometric Properties Testing of The Arabic Anterior Knee Pain Scale , Abdullah S. Alshehri

Effect of Tai Chi Exercise Combined with Mental Imagery in Improving Balance , Abdulrahman Alsubiheen

Effect of Vestibular Adaptation Exercises on Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Danah Alyahya

Muscle Dynamics as the Result of Whole Body Vibration and Plyometrics , Richard Jeremy Hubbard

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Effect of Monophasic Pulsed Current on the Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis , Abdullah Alotaibi

Screening for Torticollis and Plagiocephaly: The Role of the Pediatrician , Lisa Ann Change-Yee Hwang

Effect of 17β Estradiol & Foot Strike Patterns on Physiological & Biomechanical Changes in Runners , Iman Akef Khowailed

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Inter-rater Reliability of Lumbar Segmental Instability Tests and the Subclassification , Faisal Mohammad Alyazedi

Sleep-wake Cycle Assessment in Type 2 Diabetes and Salivary Melatonin Correlates , Paula Regina Aguiar Cavalcanti

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Elasticity and Force for Knee Flexion during the Menstrual Cycle in Women , Haneul Lee

Effect of Passive Vibration on Skin Blood Flow in Good Glycemic Control and Poor Glycemic Control Type 2 Diabetics , Kanikkai Steni Balan Sackiriyas

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Co-diagnosis Frequency of Peripheral Vestibular Disorders and Physical Therapy , Summer M. San Lucas

Postural Sway, EEG and EMG Analysis of Hip and Ankle Muscles during Eight Balance Training Tasks , Yuen Yi Florence Tse

Effect of a Single High-Fat Meal and Vitamins on the Circulatory Response to Local Heat in Koreans and Caucasians , JongEun Yim

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

Virtual Reality Gaming as a Tool for Rehabilitation in Physical Therapy , Abel A. Rendon

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

Aerobic Exercise and Bone Turnover in Trained and Untrained Premenopausal Women , Michelle Prowse

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

Effect of 3-Electrode Electrical Stimulation on Current Delivery and Healing in Chronic Wounds , HyeJin Suh

Theses/Dissertations from 2007 2007

Is Electrical Stimulation a Predictive Tool for Autonomic Dysfunction in Males with Diabetes? , Susan Dorothy Rand

Theses/Dissertations from 2005 2005

The Effect of Posterior Versus Anterior Glide Joint Mobilization on External Rotation Range of Motion of Patients with Shoulder Adhesive Capsulitis , Andrea J. Johnson

The Effect of Electrical Stimulation on Blood Flow in Chronic Wounds in Patients with and without Diabetes , Daryl J. Lawson

Isokinetic Knee Strength in Females with Fibromyalgia , Flora F. Shafiee

Difference in Transverse Plane Scapular Position of Professional Baseball Players Relative to Baseball Field Position , James M. Syms

The Effect of Positioning on Pelvic Floor Muscle Activity as Evaluated with Surface Electromyography in Normals , Karen R. Whitter-Brandon

Theses/Dissertations from 2004 2004

Orthopedic Treatment Outcomes and Physical Therapists' Orthopedic Clinical Specialist Status , Karin Granberg

The Effectiveness of a Physical Therapy Intervention for Children with Hypotonia and Flatfeet , Charmayne G. Ross

Theses/Dissertations from 2003 2003

The Role of Health Promotion in Physical Therapy , Brenda L. Rea

Predicting Sacroiliac Syndrome: The Association Between Noninvasive Sacroiliac Joint Tests and Sacroiliac Joint Injections , Lorraine D. Webb

Theses/Dissertations from 2002 2002

Prevalence of various Upper Extremity Disorders in Patients with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome versus Patients without Carpal Tunnel Syndrome , Daniel C. Buda

Effect of Electrode Size, Shape, and Placement on Electrical Current and Subject Comfort During Electrical Stimulation , Bonnie J. Forrester

Patterns of Scholarly Productivity in Physical Therapy Faculty , Ardith L. Williams-Meyer

Theses/Dissertations from 2001 2001

The Effects of Education on Fear-Avoidance Behavior of Subjects with Work-Related Low Back Pain , Marie A. Anger

Toward the Optimal Waveform for Electrical Stimulation , Scott Douglas Bennie

Factors in Predicting the Number of Home Care Physical Visits , Bruce D. Bradley

A Practice Analysis Survey: Defining the Clinical Practice of Primary Care Physical Therapy , Edsen Bermudez Donato

Disability Self-Assessment and Upper Quarter Muscle Balance in Females , Eric Glenn Johnson

Theses/Dissertations from 2000 2000

Comparison of Elderly Non-Fallers and Fallers on Performance Measures of Functional Reach, Sensory Organizations, and Limits of Stability , Harvey W. Wallmann

Theses/Dissertations from 1999 1999

Patient participation in physical therapy goal-setting , Susan M. Baker

Theses/Dissertations from 1998 1998

Prediction of Discharge Destination from Initial Physical Therapy Assessment using the Physical Assessment Key (PAK) , Wendy L. Chung and Kimberly A. Vieten

Does the Oswestry or SF-36 Help a Therapist to Predict Treatment Classification , Amy Crawford and Denese D. Kaufeldt-Soliz

Reliability and Validity of Assessing Student Performance of Psychomotor Skills in Entry Level Physical Therapy Curricula , Nancy Sue Darr

Theses/Dissertations from 1997 1997

Reference Serum Chemistry and Hematological Values for Spinal Cord Injured Patients , Michael S. Laymon and Antone L. Davis II

Discharge Outcomes : An Evaluation of a Functional Index of Physical Assistance , Jan R. Snell

Theses/Dissertations from 1985 1985

A Comparison of Strength Improvement on Free Weights and the Universal Centurion , David J. Davies

Theses/Dissertations from 1984 1984

The effect of dextrose ingestion on cardiovascular endurance , Judith M. Axford

Theses/Dissertations from 1980 1980

The Ingestion of Garlic and its Effect on Cardiovascular Endurance , Thomas G. Blackwelder

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9.1 Developing a Strong, Clear Thesis Statement

Learning objectives.

• Develop a strong, clear thesis statement with the proper elements.
• Revise your thesis statement.

Have you ever known a person who was not very good at telling stories? You probably had trouble following his train of thought as he jumped around from point to point, either being too brief in places that needed further explanation or providing too many details on a meaningless element. Maybe he told the end of the story first, then moved to the beginning and later added details to the middle. His ideas were probably scattered, and the story did not flow very well. When the story was over, you probably had many questions.

Just as a personal anecdote can be a disorganized mess, an essay can fall into the same trap of being out of order and confusing. That is why writers need a thesis statement to provide a specific focus for their essay and to organize what they are about to discuss in the body.

Just like a topic sentence summarizes a single paragraph, the thesis statement summarizes an entire essay. It tells the reader the point you want to make in your essay, while the essay itself supports that point. It is like a signpost that signals the essay’s destination. You should form your thesis before you begin to organize an essay, but you may find that it needs revision as the essay develops.

Elements of a Thesis Statement

For every essay you write, you must focus on a central idea. This idea stems from a topic you have chosen or been assigned or from a question your teacher has asked. It is not enough merely to discuss a general topic or simply answer a question with a yes or no. You have to form a specific opinion, and then articulate that into a controlling idea —the main idea upon which you build your thesis.

Remember that a thesis is not the topic itself, but rather your interpretation of the question or subject. For whatever topic your professor gives you, you must ask yourself, “What do I want to say about it?” Asking and then answering this question is vital to forming a thesis that is precise, forceful and confident.

A thesis is one sentence long and appears toward the end of your introduction. It is specific and focuses on one to three points of a single idea—points that are able to be demonstrated in the body. It forecasts the content of the essay and suggests how you will organize your information. Remember that a thesis statement does not summarize an issue but rather dissects it.

A Strong Thesis Statement

A strong thesis statement contains the following qualities.

Specificity. A thesis statement must concentrate on a specific area of a general topic. As you may recall, the creation of a thesis statement begins when you choose a broad subject and then narrow down its parts until you pinpoint a specific aspect of that topic. For example, health care is a broad topic, but a proper thesis statement would focus on a specific area of that topic, such as options for individuals without health care coverage.

Precision. A strong thesis statement must be precise enough to allow for a coherent argument and to remain focused on the topic. If the specific topic is options for individuals without health care coverage, then your precise thesis statement must make an exact claim about it, such as that limited options exist for those who are uninsured by their employers. You must further pinpoint what you are going to discuss regarding these limited effects, such as whom they affect and what the cause is.

Ability to be argued. A thesis statement must present a relevant and specific argument. A factual statement often is not considered arguable. Be sure your thesis statement contains a point of view that can be supported with evidence.

Ability to be demonstrated. For any claim you make in your thesis, you must be able to provide reasons and examples for your opinion. You can rely on personal observations in order to do this, or you can consult outside sources to demonstrate that what you assert is valid. A worthy argument is backed by examples and details.

Forcefulness. A thesis statement that is forceful shows readers that you are, in fact, making an argument. The tone is assertive and takes a stance that others might oppose.

Confidence. In addition to using force in your thesis statement, you must also use confidence in your claim. Phrases such as I feel or I believe actually weaken the readers’ sense of your confidence because these phrases imply that you are the only person who feels the way you do. In other words, your stance has insufficient backing. Taking an authoritative stance on the matter persuades your readers to have faith in your argument and open their minds to what you have to say.

Even in a personal essay that allows the use of first person, your thesis should not contain phrases such as in my opinion or I believe . These statements reduce your credibility and weaken your argument. Your opinion is more convincing when you use a firm attitude.

On a separate sheet of paper, write a thesis statement for each of the following topics. Remember to make each statement specific, precise, demonstrable, forceful and confident.

• Texting while driving
• The legal drinking age in the United States
• Steroid use among professional athletes

Examples of Appropriate Thesis Statements

Each of the following thesis statements meets several of the following requirements:

• Specificity
• Ability to be argued
• Ability to be demonstrated
• Forcefulness
• The societal and personal struggles of Troy Maxon in the play Fences symbolize the challenge of black males who lived through segregation and integration in the United States.
• Closing all American borders for a period of five years is one solution that will tackle illegal immigration.
• Shakespeare’s use of dramatic irony in Romeo and Juliet spoils the outcome for the audience and weakens the plot.
• J. D. Salinger’s character in Catcher in the Rye , Holden Caulfield, is a confused rebel who voices his disgust with phonies, yet in an effort to protect himself, he acts like a phony on many occasions.
• Compared to an absolute divorce, no-fault divorce is less expensive, promotes fairer settlements, and reflects a more realistic view of the causes for marital breakdown.
• Exposing children from an early age to the dangers of drug abuse is a sure method of preventing future drug addicts.
• In today’s crumbling job market, a high school diploma is not significant enough education to land a stable, lucrative job.

You can find thesis statements in many places, such as in the news; in the opinions of friends, coworkers or teachers; and even in songs you hear on the radio. Become aware of thesis statements in everyday life by paying attention to people’s opinions and their reasons for those opinions. Pay attention to your own everyday thesis statements as well, as these can become material for future essays.

Now that you have read about the contents of a good thesis statement and have seen examples, take a look at the pitfalls to avoid when composing your own thesis:

A thesis is weak when it is simply a declaration of your subject or a description of what you will discuss in your essay.

Weak thesis statement: My paper will explain why imagination is more important than knowledge.

A thesis is weak when it makes an unreasonable or outrageous claim or insults the opposing side.

Weak thesis statement: Religious radicals across America are trying to legislate their Puritanical beliefs by banning required high school books.

A thesis is weak when it contains an obvious fact or something that no one can disagree with or provides a dead end.

Weak thesis statement: Advertising companies use sex to sell their products.

A thesis is weak when the statement is too broad.

Weak thesis statement: The life of Abraham Lincoln was long and challenging.

Read the following thesis statements. On a separate piece of paper, identify each as weak or strong. For those that are weak, list the reasons why. Then revise the weak statements so that they conform to the requirements of a strong thesis.

• The subject of this paper is my experience with ferrets as pets.
• The government must expand its funding for research on renewable energy resources in order to prepare for the impending end of oil.
• Edgar Allan Poe was a poet who lived in Baltimore during the nineteenth century.
• In this essay, I will give you lots of reasons why slot machines should not be legalized in Baltimore.
• Despite his promises during his campaign, President Kennedy took few executive measures to support civil rights legislation.
• Because many children’s toys have potential safety hazards that could lead to injury, it is clear that not all children’s toys are safe.
• My experience with young children has taught me that I want to be a disciplinary parent because I believe that a child without discipline can be a parent’s worst nightmare.

Writing at Work

Often in your career, you will need to ask your boss for something through an e-mail. Just as a thesis statement organizes an essay, it can also organize your e-mail request. While your e-mail will be shorter than an essay, using a thesis statement in your first paragraph quickly lets your boss know what you are asking for, why it is necessary, and what the benefits are. In short body paragraphs, you can provide the essential information needed to expand upon your request.

Thesis Statement Revision

Your thesis will probably change as you write, so you will need to modify it to reflect exactly what you have discussed in your essay. Remember from Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” that your thesis statement begins as a working thesis statement , an indefinite statement that you make about your topic early in the writing process for the purpose of planning and guiding your writing.

Working thesis statements often become stronger as you gather information and form new opinions and reasons for those opinions. Revision helps you strengthen your thesis so that it matches what you have expressed in the body of the paper.

The best way to revise your thesis statement is to ask questions about it and then examine the answers to those questions. By challenging your own ideas and forming definite reasons for those ideas, you grow closer to a more precise point of view, which you can then incorporate into your thesis statement.

Ways to Revise Your Thesis

You can cut down on irrelevant aspects and revise your thesis by taking the following steps:

1. Pinpoint and replace all nonspecific words, such as people , everything , society , or life , with more precise words in order to reduce any vagueness.

Working thesis: Young people have to work hard to succeed in life.

Revised thesis: Recent college graduates must have discipline and persistence in order to find and maintain a stable job in which they can use and be appreciated for their talents.

The revised thesis makes a more specific statement about success and what it means to work hard. The original includes too broad a range of people and does not define exactly what success entails. By replacing those general words like people and work hard , the writer can better focus his or her research and gain more direction in his or her writing.

2. Clarify ideas that need explanation by asking yourself questions that narrow your thesis.

Working thesis: The welfare system is a joke.

Revised thesis: The welfare system keeps a socioeconomic class from gaining employment by alluring members of that class with unearned income, instead of programs to improve their education and skill sets.

A joke means many things to many people. Readers bring all sorts of backgrounds and perspectives to the reading process and would need clarification for a word so vague. This expression may also be too informal for the selected audience. By asking questions, the writer can devise a more precise and appropriate explanation for joke . The writer should ask himself or herself questions similar to the 5WH questions. (See Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” for more information on the 5WH questions.) By incorporating the answers to these questions into a thesis statement, the writer more accurately defines his or her stance, which will better guide the writing of the essay.

3. Replace any linking verbs with action verbs. Linking verbs are forms of the verb to be , a verb that simply states that a situation exists.

Working thesis: Kansas City schoolteachers are not paid enough.

Revised thesis: The Kansas City legislature cannot afford to pay its educators, resulting in job cuts and resignations in a district that sorely needs highly qualified and dedicated teachers.

The linking verb in this working thesis statement is the word are . Linking verbs often make thesis statements weak because they do not express action. Rather, they connect words and phrases to the second half of the sentence. Readers might wonder, “Why are they not paid enough?” But this statement does not compel them to ask many more questions. The writer should ask himself or herself questions in order to replace the linking verb with an action verb, thus forming a stronger thesis statement, one that takes a more definitive stance on the issue:

• Who is not paying the teachers enough?
• What is considered “enough”?
• What is the problem?
• What are the results

4. Omit any general claims that are hard to support.

Working thesis: Today’s teenage girls are too sexualized.

Revised thesis: Teenage girls who are captivated by the sexual images on MTV are conditioned to believe that a woman’s worth depends on her sensuality, a feeling that harms their self-esteem and behavior.

It is true that some young women in today’s society are more sexualized than in the past, but that is not true for all girls. Many girls have strict parents, dress appropriately, and do not engage in sexual activity while in middle school and high school. The writer of this thesis should ask the following questions:

• Which teenage girls?
• What constitutes “too” sexualized?
• Why are they behaving that way?
• Where does this behavior show up?
• What are the repercussions?

In the first section of Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” , you determined your purpose for writing and your audience. You then completed a freewriting exercise about an event you recently experienced and chose a general topic to write about. Using that general topic, you then narrowed it down by answering the 5WH questions. After you answered these questions, you chose one of the three methods of prewriting and gathered possible supporting points for your working thesis statement.

Now, on a separate sheet of paper, write down your working thesis statement. Identify any weaknesses in this sentence and revise the statement to reflect the elements of a strong thesis statement. Make sure it is specific, precise, arguable, demonstrable, forceful, and confident.

Collaboration

Please share with a classmate and compare your answers.

In your career you may have to write a project proposal that focuses on a particular problem in your company, such as reinforcing the tardiness policy. The proposal would aim to fix the problem; using a thesis statement would clearly state the boundaries of the problem and tell the goals of the project. After writing the proposal, you may find that the thesis needs revision to reflect exactly what is expressed in the body. Using the techniques from this chapter would apply to revising that thesis.

Key Takeaways

• Proper essays require a thesis statement to provide a specific focus and suggest how the essay will be organized.
• A thesis statement is your interpretation of the subject, not the topic itself.
• A strong thesis is specific, precise, forceful, confident, and is able to be demonstrated.
• A strong thesis challenges readers with a point of view that can be debated and can be supported with evidence.
• A weak thesis is simply a declaration of your topic or contains an obvious fact that cannot be argued.
• Depending on your topic, it may or may not be appropriate to use first person point of view.
• Revise your thesis by ensuring all words are specific, all ideas are exact, and all verbs express action.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Physical Education and Exercise Science Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2021 2021.

Warming Up and Cooling Down: Perceptions and Behaviors Associated with Aerobic Exercise , Balea J. Schumacher

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An Examination of Changes in Muscle Thickness, Isometric Strength, and Body Water Throughout the Menstrual Cycle , Tayla E. Kuehne

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Psychological Responses to High-Intensity Interval Training Exercise: A Comparison of Ungraded Running and Graded Walking , Abby Fleming

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The Effects of Music Choice on Perceptual and Physiological Responses to Treadmill Exercise , Taylor A. Shimshock

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The Effect of Exercise Order on Body Fat Loss During Concurrent Training , Tonya Lee Davis-Miller

Anti-Fat Attitudes and Weight Bias Internalization: An Investigation of How BMI Impacts Perceptions, Opinions and Attitudes , Laurie Schrider

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

The Effect of Music Cadence on Step Frequency in the Recreational Runner , Micaela A. Galosky

The Hypertrophic Effects of Practical Vascular Blood Flow Restriction Training , John Francis O'halloran

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

The Effects of Exercise Modality on State Body Image , Elizabeth Anne Hubbard

Perceptual Responses to High-Intensity Interval Training in Overweight and Sedentary Individuals , Nicholas Martinez

Comparisons of acute neuromuscular fatigue and recovery after maximal effort strength training using powerlifts , Nicholas Todd Theilen

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

The Impact of Continuous and Discontinuous Cycle Exercise on Affect: An Examination of the Dual-Mode Model , Sam Greeley

Systematic review of core muscle electromyographic activity during physical fitness exercises , Jason Martuscello

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

The Effect of Unexpected Exercise Duration on Rating of Perceived Exertion in an Untrained, Sedentary Population , Lisa M. Giblin

The Effect of Various Carbohydrate Supplements on Postprandial Blood Glucose Response in Female Soccer Players , Nina Pannoni

Middle School Physical Education Programs: A Comparison of Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity in Sports Game Play , Marcia Ann Patience

The Effects of Pre-Exercise Carbohydrate Supplementation on Resistance Training Performance During an Acute Resistance Training Session , Kelly Raposo

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Effects of Fat-Free and 2% Chocolate Milk on Strength and Body Composition Following Resistance Training , Ashley T. Forsyth

Relationship Between Muscular Strength Testing to Dynamic Muscular Performance in Division One American Football Players , Johnathan Fuentes

Effects of Ingesting Fat Free and Low Fat Chocolate Milk After Resistance Training on Exercise Performance , Breanna Myers

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Effects of a Commercially Available Energy Drink on Anaerobic Performance , Jason J. Downing

The Impact of Wearable Weights on the Cardiovascular and Metabolic Responses to Treadmill Walking , Kristine M. Fallon

Six Fifth Grade Students Experiences Participating in Active Gaming during Physical Eduction Classes , Lisa Witherspoon Hansen

The impact of wearable weights on perceptual responses to treadmill walking , Ashley T. Kuczynski

The Preference of Protein Powders Among Adult Males and Females: A Protein Powder Taste Study , Joshua Manter

Caloric Expenditure and Substrate Utilization in Underwater Treadmill Running Versus Land-Based Treadmill Running , Courtney Schaal

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A Survey of NCAA Division 1 Strength and Conditioning Coaches- Characteristics and Opinions , Jeremy Powers

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Perceptions of group exercise participants based on body type, appearance and attractiveness of the instructor , Jennifer Mears

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Be active! An examination of social support's role in individual vs. team competition in worksite health promotion , Lauren Kriz

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Practice in Identifying Effective Thesis Statements

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• An Introduction to Punctuation
• Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
• M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
• B.A., English, State University of New York

This exercise will help you understand the difference between an effective and ineffective thesis statement , ie a sentence that identifies the main idea and central purpose of an essay .

Instructions

For each pair of sentences below, select the one that you think would make the more effective thesis in the introductory paragraph of a short essay (approximately 400 to 600 words). Keep in mind that an effective thesis statement should be sharply focused and specific , not just a general statement of fact.

When you're done, you may want to discuss your answers with your classmates, and then compare your responses with the suggested answers on page two. Be ready to defend your choices. Because these thesis statements appear outside the context of complete essays, all responses are judgment calls, not absolute certainties.

• (a) The Hunger Games is a science fiction adventure film based on the novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins. (b) The Hunger Games is a morality tale about the dangers of a political system that is dominated by the wealthy.
• (a) There is no question that cell phones have changed our lives in a very big way. (b) While cell phones provide freedom and mobility, they can also become a leash, compelling users to answer them anywhere and at any time.
• (a) Finding a job is never easy, but it can be especially hard when the economy is still feeling the effects of a recession and employers are reluctant to hire new workers. (b) College students looking for part-time work should begin their search by taking advantage of job-finding resources on campus.
• (a) For the past three decades, coconut oil has been unjustly criticized as an artery-clogging saturated fat. (b) Cooking oil is plant, animal, or synthetic fat that is used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking.
• (a) There have been over 200 movies about Count Dracula, most of them only very loosely based on the novel published by Bram Stoker in 1897. (b) Despite its title, Bram Stoker's Dracula , a film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, takes considerable liberties with Stoker's novel.
• (a) There are several steps that teachers can take to encourage academic integrity and curtail cheating in their classes. (b) There is an epidemic of cheating in America's schools and colleges, and there are no easy solutions to this problem.
• (a) J. Robert Oppenheimer, the American physicist who directed the building of the first atomic bombs during World War II, had technical, moral, and political reasons for opposing the development of the hydrogen bomb. (b) J. Robert Oppenheimer often referred to as "the father of the atomic bomb," was born in New York City in 1904.
• (a) The iPad has revolutionized the mobile-computing landscape and created a huge profit stream for Apple. (b) The iPad, with its relatively large high-definition screen, has helped to revitalize the comic book industry.
• (a) Like other addictive behaviors, Internet addiction may have serious negative consequences, including academic failure, job loss, and a breakdown in personal relationships. (b) Drug and alcohol addiction is a major problem in the world today, and many people suffer from it.
• (a) When I was a child I used to visit my grandmother in Moline every Sunday. (b) Every Sunday we visited my grandmother, who lived in a tiny house that was undeniably haunted.
• (a)  The bicycle was introduced in the nineteenth century and rapidly grew into a worldwide phenomenon. (b) In several ways, bicycles today are better than they were 100 or even 50 years ago.
• (a) Although many varieties of beans belong in a healthy diet, among the most nutritious are black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and pinto beans. (b) Although beans are generally good for you, some kinds of raw beans can be dangerous if they're not well cooked.

Suggested Answers

• (b)   The Hunger Games  is a morality tale about the dangers of a political system that is dominated by the wealthy.
• (b) While cell phones provide freedom and mobility, they can also become a leash, compelling users to answer them anywhere and at any time.
• (b) College students looking for part-time work should begin their search by taking advantage of job-finding resources on campus.
• (a) For the past three decades, coconut oil has been unjustly criticized as an artery-clogging saturated fat.
• (b) Despite its title,  Bram Stoker's Dracula , a film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, takes considerable liberties with Stoker's novel.
• (a) There are several steps that teachers can take to encourage academic integrity and curtail cheating in their classes.
• (a) J. Robert Oppenheimer , the American physicist who directed the building of the first atomic bombs during World War II, had technical, moral, and political reasons for opposing the development of the hydrogen bomb.
• (b) The iPad, with its relatively large high-definition screen, has helped to revitalize the comic book industry.
• (a) Like other addictive behaviors, Internet addiction may have serious negative consequences, including academic failure, job loss, and a breakdown in personal relationships.
• (b) Every Sunday we visited my grandmother, who lived in a tiny house that was undeniably haunted.
• (b) In several ways, bicycles today are better than they were 100 or even 50 years ago.
• (a) Although many varieties of beans belong in a healthy diet, among the most nutritious are black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and pinto beans. 
• Thesis: Definition and Examples in Composition
• Definition and Examples of Progymnasmata in Rhetoric
• Composition Type: Problem-Solution Essays
• Definition and Examples of Body Paragraphs in Composition
• An Introduction to Academic Writing
• Correcting Run-On Sentences and Comma Splices
• What Is a Compelling Introduction?
• Book Report: Definition, Guidelines, and Advice
• Exercise in Identifying Adjectives
• Definition and Examples of Valid Arguments
• How to Turn Positive Statements Into Negative Statements
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• How to Identify Sentences by Function
• Unity in Composition
• Identifying and Correcting Subject-Verb Agreement Errors

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• How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

Published on January 11, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on August 15, 2023 by Eoghan Ryan.

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . It usually comes near the end of your introduction .

Your thesis will look a bit different depending on the type of essay you’re writing. But the thesis statement should always clearly state the main idea you want to get across. Everything else in your essay should relate back to this idea.

You can write your thesis statement by following four simple steps:

• Start with a question
• Write your initial answer
• Develop your answer
• Refine your thesis statement

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Table of contents

What is a thesis statement, placement of the thesis statement, step 1: start with a question, step 2: write your initial answer, step 3: develop your answer, step 4: refine your thesis statement, types of thesis statements, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about thesis statements.

A thesis statement summarizes the central points of your essay. It is a signpost telling the reader what the essay will argue and why.

The best thesis statements are:

• Concise: A good thesis statement is short and sweet—don’t use more words than necessary. State your point clearly and directly in one or two sentences.
• Contentious: Your thesis shouldn’t be a simple statement of fact that everyone already knows. A good thesis statement is a claim that requires further evidence or analysis to back it up.
• Coherent: Everything mentioned in your thesis statement must be supported and explained in the rest of your paper.

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The thesis statement generally appears at the end of your essay introduction or research paper introduction .

The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education. The use of the internet in academic contexts and among young people more generally is hotly debated. For many who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. This concern, while understandable, is misguided. The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education: the internet facilitates easier access to information, exposure to different perspectives, and a flexible learning environment for both students and teachers.

You should come up with an initial thesis, sometimes called a working thesis , early in the writing process . As soon as you’ve decided on your essay topic , you need to work out what you want to say about it—a clear thesis will give your essay direction and structure.

You might already have a question in your assignment, but if not, try to come up with your own. What would you like to find out or decide about your topic?

For example, you might ask:

After some initial research, you can formulate a tentative answer to this question. At this stage it can be simple, and it should guide the research process and writing process .

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Now you need to consider why this is your answer and how you will convince your reader to agree with you. As you read more about your topic and begin writing, your answer should get more detailed.

In your essay about the internet and education, the thesis states your position and sketches out the key arguments you’ll use to support it.

The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education because it facilitates easier access to information.

In your essay about braille, the thesis statement summarizes the key historical development that you’ll explain.

The invention of braille in the 19th century transformed the lives of blind people, allowing them to participate more actively in public life.

A strong thesis statement should tell the reader:

• Why you hold this position
• What they’ll learn from your essay
• The key points of your argument or narrative

The final thesis statement doesn’t just state your position, but summarizes your overall argument or the entire topic you’re going to explain. To strengthen a weak thesis statement, it can help to consider the broader context of your topic.

These examples are more specific and show that you’ll explore your topic in depth.

Your thesis statement should match the goals of your essay, which vary depending on the type of essay you’re writing:

• In an argumentative essay , your thesis statement should take a strong position. Your aim in the essay is to convince your reader of this thesis based on evidence and logical reasoning.
• In an expository essay , you’ll aim to explain the facts of a topic or process. Your thesis statement doesn’t have to include a strong opinion in this case, but it should clearly state the central point you want to make, and mention the key elements you’ll explain.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

• Ad hominem fallacy
• Post hoc fallacy
• Appeal to authority fallacy
• False cause fallacy
• Sunk cost fallacy

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A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

The thesis statement is essential in any academic essay or research paper for two main reasons:

• It gives your writing direction and focus.
• It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.

Without a clear thesis statement, an essay can end up rambling and unfocused, leaving your reader unsure of exactly what you want to say.

Follow these four steps to come up with a thesis statement :

• Ask a question about your topic .
• Write your initial answer.
• Develop your answer by including reasons.
• Refine your answer, adding more detail and nuance.

The thesis statement should be placed at the end of your essay introduction .

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If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. (2023, August 15). How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 13, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/thesis-statement/

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Master of Science in Exercise Physiology

Beginning in the fall of 2024, you can pursue your master's degree in exercise physiology at UW-Eau Claire.

Join the Growing Field

The master of science in exercise physiology program will be offered at UW-Eau Claire beginning in the fall of 2024 .

Designed to provide foundational knowledge and clinical experiences, the exercise physiology graduate program will prepare you for work in a variety of preventative health programs. This can include medically-based fitness programs, cardiac rehabilitation and other clinically related areas — such as aging, diabetes management, cancer, and neurology — as well as rehabilitation programs for individuals with disabilities.

Currently, the kinesiology department holds affiliation agreements with many hospitals and clinics in the Eau Claire area and regionally in western Wisconsin, eastern Minnesota and even select hospitals and clinics around the U.S for those students interested in looking outside the region for their capstone experience.

In addition to preparing you for application to advanced professional degree programs, this degree will enable you to fill the growing demand for exercise physiologists!

Program Details

Our program's strong collaborations with organizations such as Mayo Clinic, outpatient rehabilitation clinics, and area hospitals will give you the opportunity to work in a variety of settings and gain invaluable experience outside the classroom. Your clinical experience may even take you out of state! 

The exercise physiology program will be a part of ongoing initiatives at UW-Eau Claire to increase interdisciplinary collaboration among health science focused departments in areas such as curriculum development, research, and service while working to provide advising and clinical learning experiences for students in these select departments.

At UW-Eau Claire, you'll have the opportunity to collaborate on one-of-a-kind research projects, including through the Mayo Clinic Health System. Mayo Clinic Health System sites, Marshfield Clinic, and other outpatient rehabilitation clinics will serve as placement sites for you to gain experience working with a wide range of clientele.

The department has a variety of faculty-led outreach programs for you to get involved with, including the Community Fitness Program, Physical Activity and Recreation for Individuals with Disabilities in the Eau Claire Area (P.R.I.D.E.), P.R.I.D.E.4Adults, Parkinson’s Exercise Program, and Cancer Recovery and Fitness. Participating in these programs allows you to work alongside your peers and faculty while developing important clinical skills.

Blugold Stories

While earning a graduate degree in exercise physiology at UWEC, you'll have access to our expert faculty, a variety of fitness equipment and spaces, and opportunities to work with — and mentor — undergraduate students.

Just the facts

Investing in the Health Sciences UWEC was awarded $340.3 million to build a state-of-the-art Science and Health Sciences Building for students pursuing STEM careers.

13 Programs To Choose From From athletic training to rehabilitation science, our academic offerings put you on track to find a career you love in kinesiology.

10 Pre-Professional Health Paths These robust programs will provide you with the support and academic planning needed to enter professional degree programs.

A Top-Ranked Program UWEC was recently ranked as having the 9th best exercise science bachelor's degree program in the country. BestHealthDegrees.com

Hike Across Eau Claire Take advantage of 10 hiking trails all within five miles of campus.

Master of Science in Exercise Physiology (4+1 Accelerated Plan)

The Master of Science in Exercise Physiology (MSEP) Accelerated Plan allows qualified students to start taking courses in the approved master’s degree while finishing their bachelor’s degree in  Rehabilitation Science . Graduate course sequencing allows undergraduate students to complete their fourth year of the  Rehabilitation Science major  while completing the first-year coursework in the MSEP. This pathway Master of Science degree in Exercise Physiology in a total of five years upon matriculation to UW-Eau Claire.

A student interested in the MSEP Accelerated plan should consult with academic advisors and the Program Director of MSEP and apply to the undergraduate major in  Rehabilitation Science  in the Department of Kinesiology during the  sophomore year  and earn credits toward their Bachelor of Science degree. Upon successful completion of the fifth year in the MSEP program, a student would graduate with a Master of Science in Exercise Physiology degree.

Admission Requirements (4+1 Accelerated Plan)

At the time of admission to the Master of Science in exercise physiology program accelerated plan, a student must have:

• Earned a minimum of 95 credits at the end of the 3 rd  year  in their undergraduate Rehabilitation Science program (or obtained a consent of the Program Director).
• A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 after the 3 rd  year  in their Rehabilitation Science program.
• Pre-requisites  listed here

For questions related to the program, please contact: [email protected] .

Where can the master of science in exercise physiology program lead me after graduation?

A major strength of this program is its broad-based foundation in the science and application of exercise physiology principles to a wide range of clinical populations. 

Beyond the traditional avenues, the training received through this degree will be especially relevant for those who seek positions in clinical, university or industry-based research laboratories, or want to use this degree as a preparatory option for application to advanced professional degree programs (e.g., physical therapy, occupational therapy, physician assistant, medical school, etc.). The rigor of this program will also prepare students to enter research-based doctoral degree programs.

The core curriculum of this program will provide you with a breadth of foundational knowledge through courses such as advanced exercise physiology, laboratory procedures, clinical exercise physiology, and adapted physical activity; as well as theoretical knowledge regarding research methods and application of statistical procedures. Also, students will complete one of three capstone experiences (either a thesis, scholarly research paper, or internship) based on their professional goals.

Here are a few courses in Master of Science in Exercise Physiology at UW-Eau Claire.

Advanced Exercise Physiology

The purpose of this course is to enable the exercise/rehabilitation professional to gain an advanced and detailed understanding of the responses of physiological systems to acute exercise and how the repeated application of exercise results in adaptations within physiological systems (i.e. training adaptation). Emphasis will be placed on the metabolic/bioenergetic, cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and pulmonary responses to acute and chronic exercise (in normal and other environmental conditions), the interaction of these system responses, and to dispel any myths that might relate to exercise training. The student will also be provided opportunities to engage in critical analyses of the current literature regarding these topics.

Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity

The course will examine psychological aspects which affect peak performance in sport, along with exploring the effect that sport and physical activity have on individuals.

Applied Nutrition in Kinesiology

The purpose of this course is to gain insight into nutritional issues related to various populations. Students will assess dietary, physical, and performance standards related to these populations and develop alternative plans for healthy lifestyles.

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Related Programs

Thinking about studying master of science in exercise physiology? You might also be interested in exploring these related programs.

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Home > STUDENTWORK > HONORS-THESIS > 134

Honors Thesis

THE EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON MENTAL HEALTH

Xavier A. Pinex , University of South Dakota

Date of Award

Spring 3-24-2020

Document Type

Department/major.

Kinesiology and Sport Management

First Advisor

Ms. Laura Kruger

Second Advisor

Dr. Hyung Suk Yang

Third Advisor

Ms. Debra Robertson

Exercise, Mental Health

Subject Categories

Other Kinesiology | Other Mental and Social Health

Exercise is an extremely important aspect towards positive mental health. Multiple studies have been done previously that show one benefit or another that exercise has towards mental health, but previously there had been no attempt to summarize the findings of these studies. The benefits that exercise has to an individual’s mental health are numerous, but despite this exercise is an underutilized tool in the quest for better mental health. There are many variables that affect the benefits of exercise to an individual’s mental health and it is important to understand all these variables to understand how to properly exercise to obtain these benefits. This thesis looks specifically at the connection between exercise and mental health, how to obtain the greatest benefits from exercise, as well as the potential downsides of utilizing this tool to help an individual’s mental health. It is important not only to understand these factors to help the public, as well as to help the world altogether.

Recommended Citation

Pinex, Xavier A., "THE EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON MENTAL HEALTH" (2020). Honors Thesis . 134. https://red.library.usd.edu/honors-thesis/134

Since April 27, 2021

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Want to reduce stress and sharpen your brain? Try these brain exercises

Have you ever heard of brain gym exercises? It's a set of simple routines designed to improve cognitive functions. Generally, it's used to improve kids' learning abilities, but they can be employed to de-stress, improve workplace efficiency, interpersonal skills and more. These exercises improve brain function and energy by increasing blood flow. When practised regularly and repeated smoothly, these exercises enhance the interaction between the brain's right and left hemispheres. This can lead to better learning outcomes by activating neural pathways. Consistent practice can also improve handwriting and reduce errors. Here are a few of the brain gym exercises:

Lazy 8 Stand straight and make a thumbs-up gesture with your right hand. Without moving your body, trace the number 8 sideways, or the infinity sign in the air with your thumb, ensuring your eyes follow the movement of your fingertip. Alternate between your right and left hands and repeat the motion 20 to 30 times. This exercise is excellent for improving concentration and hand-eye coordination.

Brain button Place your left hand over your stomach. With your right hand's index finger and thumb, rub the area where your chest begins, just below the shoulder, in a circular motion. Repeat this exercise ten times. It will energize the brain, improve attention while reading and writing, and help calm and focus the mind.

Double doodle Sit comfortably in a chair and take five deep breaths. Hold a pencil in each hand, then draw half of a picture with each hand simultaneously. The shapes can be simple lines or figures. After drawing, colour the picture. This exercise promotes bilateral coordination and creativity.

Positive points Press your fingers at the centre point between your eyebrows and hairline, then take deep breaths for ten seconds. This exercise helps reduce stress and improve mood.

Trace X Imagine as if you are writing the letter X on a wall with your eyes. Perform eight repetitions, then rest for ten minutes. Repeat this exercise to enhance concentration.

Hook up Hook your right leg over your left, then stretch out your hands and interlock your fingers to form a hook. Take six deep breaths, fold your hands inward, and place them close to your chest. Take six more deep breaths. Repeat this exercise three to five times to improve concentration and calm the mind.

Cross crawl Stand upright, bend your left knee, and raise it to touch your left knee with your right elbow. Perform this exercise eight times. It helps better integrate the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

Finger exercise Stand or sit and hold the fingers of both hands together with the palms facing upwards. Move both thumbs forward and backwards ten times each, then repeat with the other fingers. This exercise is beneficial for enhancing intellectual abilities and problem-solving skills.

Incorporating brain gym exercises into your child's daily routine is a good practice. Since these exercises take only a short time, they won't interfere with study time. Exercising together as a family can also strengthen relationships. Teachers can incorporate brain gym exercises into the school day alongside sports training to help reduce students' mental stress and improve their learning performance. Information courtesy: Bismi David Occupational Therapist Child Development Centre Government Medical College Thiruvananthapuram

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• Graduate Student Newsletter

August 2024 Newsletter

Fall New Student Orientation

Welcome new Summer and Fall students! All students who began during the Summer term or are starting in the Fall will be invited to the  New Graduate Student Orientation  hosted on the Canvas platform as a self-guided, online resource designed to help prepare you as a graduate student at Case Western Reserve University. The orientation modules will contain valuable info about Diversity 360, Kelvin Smith Library, Access Services, Health and Counseling Services, the CWRU Police, [U]Tech, Academic Integrity, and more!

Additionally, we will host an in-person  Welcome to Campus event  on Tuesday, August 20 from 9:00am to 4:00pm at the Tinkham Veale University Center, where you can pick up your student ID card and RTA sticker, get a CWRU t-shirt, attend information sessions, and meet the Grad Studies staff and other students.  Register here .

We will also hold a  Graduate Studies Welcome Zoom Session  on Friday, August 23 from 10:00am to 11:00am EDT.  Register here .

For other events,  check out the entire orientation schedule ! In the meantime, please visit the  "First Steps" Information  on our website for setting up your email, finding off-campus housing, learning about community resources, and more. Also continue to complete items on the  post-admission checklist .

Have questions about Orientation? Send an email to  [email protected] .

New International Students

New international students are required to check in with the VISA Office (Visa & Immigration Services & Advisors). Please check-in online via Terra Dotta (rather than in person) by completing this form . Students need to complete the process of checking in before the end of Add/Drop period on Friday, September 6.

International students are also invited to attend an in-person orientation session to meet staff from the VISA Office as well as the Office of International Student Resources and Engagement (OISRE) to learn about important immigration regulations, visa status, and transitioning well to studying at CWRU and in the United States.

• Thursday, August 15, 4:00pm in Schmitt Auditorium (Millis Hall)
• Tuesday, August 20. 4:00pm in Tink Ballrooms (2nd floor)
• Tuesday, August 27, 10:00am in Kelvin Smith Library LL06B/C

Congrats to Summer Graduates!

You did it! Degrees for students who completed their work during the summer semester will be awarded on Friday, August 16. Watch for announcements after the New Year inviting you to attend Commencement in May 2025.

Diplomas for August 2024 Graduates

Summer graduates, look for an email in the coming days with detailed instructions on how and when you can obtain your diploma. You will be able to pick up your diploma from the Graduate Studies office (Tomlinson 203) during normal business hours (except August 20) or email  [email protected]  to designate someone to retrieve it on your behalf; photo ID is required for anyone picking up diplomas.  All academic and financial obligations must be resolved for diplomas to be released .

Any diplomas remaining after Friday, August 30 will be mailed to your  Diploma Mailing Address on file with the University . Please review your address in SIS,  update if needed , or contact  [email protected] . This mailing is at no cost to you.

So please make arrangements to get your diploma as soon as possible -  you earned it, you deserve it!

Waiver of Registration

Missed last semester's deadline to apply to graduate? If you've completed all graduation requirements, but did not meet the summer graduation deadline, you may be eligible to waive class registration for the fall. Here's how:

• Submit all final materials for your degree as  listed here , including the Waiver of Registration form (included in the downloadable file).
• International students must have the waiver of registration signed by  International Student Services  (ISS).

The waiver of registration deadline is Friday, September 6. Once completed and signed, please submit the form along with all your other  final graduation materials  to the SGS office or by email to your program coordinator in SGS or to  [email protected] .

Waiver for Medical and Fitness Plans

Do you have health insurance? If you're already covered, make sure to  waive your Student Medical Plan  before the end of the Drop/Add period on Friday, September 6 to avoid being charged. Also, every graduate student is automatically enrolled as a member of  One-to-One Fitness  but if you are not interested you have the option to also  waive this plan  by September 6. If you opted to waive the Student Medical Plan and/or the One-to-One Fitness Plan in previous academic years, you  must  apply again if you intend to waive these plans for the Fall 2024 semester.

Please note : If you are staying on the Student Medical Plan, your coverage year began August 1.

Register for Fall 2024 Classes

Registration is still open in SIS for Fall 2024 courses . If you sign-up for your first class on or after Tuesday, August 27, a late registration fee of $25 will be charged. You will not have access to your courses on Canvas or be able to pick up your RTA sticker until you have registered. You won't be able to register if you have a hold on your account in SIS; check our  July newsletter  to find out how to remove holds.

You have until the end of the Add/Drop period on Friday, September 6 to make any changes to your course schedule.

Teaching Assistant Training

Graduate students who will serve as teaching assistants (TA) for the first time for Fall 2024 courses are  required  to participate UCITE's  TA Training  including registering for UNIV 400 in SIS to take the webinar course in Canvas. International student TAs also need to email our office ( [email protected] ) to schedule a Case Spoken English Test (CSET). If you have questions, please contact  [email protected] . Training must be completed by September 30.

Names, Pronouns, & Identity in SIS

We recognize that many CWRU students use names other than their legal names to identify themselves. Check out how to  Add a Preferred Name  or  Personal Pronoun  or  Gender Identity  in SIS.

Also beginning this year, students are encouraged to record your name pronunciation in SIS so faculty and staff can correctly address you on campus and in Canvas.

Considering a Career in Teaching?

Grad students and postdocs can sign up for the non-credit  UNIV 401 Advanced Professional Development for University Teaching Seminar  this fall to provide an introduction to pedagogical skills for future faculty. The seminar meets on Tuesdays during the fall semester; enrollment is limited to 15 students. Register for UNIV 401 in SIS and email  [email protected]  with any questions.

English Language Presentation Skills

Spoken English Language Programs  (SELP) in the School of Graduate Studies offers  UNIV 402C - Presentation Skills , a semester-long course open to all international graduate students and postdocs. This free, non-credit course is designed to improve presentation skills, overall English language proficiency, and US academic and social culture comprehension. UNIV 402C meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays in Tomlinson 135, one section from 2:30 to 3:45pm, the other from 4:00 to 5:15pm. To enroll or ask any questions, please email  Eric Moore , Director of Spoken English Language Programs. Can't participate this fall? The course will also be offered in both the spring and summer semesters.

Labor Day University Holiday

Our office and most of CWRU will be closed on Monday, September 2 in observance of Labor Day. Please make sure to check schedules for campus facilities (such as dining, libraries, gyms, shuttles, etc) for the long weekend so you can plan accordingly.

For new content almost every day of interest to grad students - including other news on campus, important resources, upcoming events, and random fun stuff - please follow us on our social media platforms. Search for  @cwrusgs  on both  Facebook  and  Twitter  or click these links!

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Jordan Chiles stripped of Olympic bronze medal; reacts to ruling

Josh sanchez | aug 10, 2024.

Jordan Chiles is taking a break from social media.

After a stunning ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) which determined the judging panel at the women's floor exercise final improperly granted an inquiry that increased Chiles' score.

The CAS determined the inquiry was made after the one-minute deadline for requests .

"The Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) shall determine the ranking of the Final of the women’s Floor exercise and assign the medal(s) in accordance with the above decision," the CAS said.

Romania's Ana Barbosu has had her Olympics bronze medal reinstated.

After the ruling, Chiles said she is taking a break from social media for her mental health.

WATCH:  Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles' Eiffel Tower TikTok full of championship swag

"I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you," she wrote on Instagram, along with a series of broken heart emojis.

Jordan Chiles' statement on her IG story as she awaits her medal ruling 💔 (via @ChilesJordan ) pic.twitter.com/Fj3yTMKOFO — Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) August 10, 2024

Her sister, Jasmine, says Chiles was stripped of her bronze medal.

Jazmin Chiles, Jordan Chiles’ sister, says the gymnast was officially stripped of her medal: “Racism is real, it exists, it is alive and well.” pic.twitter.com/e7XHRbiEEB — philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 10, 2024

USA Gymnastics released a statement of support for Chiles, and condemned attacks she has been facing on social media.

"We are devastated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling regarding women’s floor exercise. The inquiry into the Difficulty Value of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercise routine was filed in good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring," a statement read.

MORE: Jordan Chiles bringing Olympic medals, personality back to UCLA

"Throughout the appeal process, Jordan has been subject to consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media. No athlete should be subject to such treatment. We condemn the attacks and those who engage, support or instigate them. We commend Jordan for conducting herself with integrity both on and off the competition floor, and we continue to stand by and support her."

Chiles was flooded by messages on social media during the review, with some racially-charged attacks and others calling her a cheater.

It's an unfortunate end to what was an incredible Olympic run for the USA gymnast.

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JOSH SANCHEZ

Managing Editor: Cowboys on SI - Contributor: The Athlete Lifestyle on SI, and Sporting News MMA - Contact: [email protected]

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In the Wake of Lazar Dukic’s Death, CrossFit Games Athlete Claims Safety Concerns Were Ignored

9x Games athlete Brent Fikowski released a statement detailing pleas for safety information in the run-up to the CrossFit Games

.css-fdwto5{margin:0rem;font-size:3.125rem;line-height:1;font-family:Knockout,Knockout-roboto,Knockout-local,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;letter-spacing:0.03rem;}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-fdwto5{font-size:3.125rem;line-height:1;}}.css-fdwto5 em,.css-fdwto5 i{font-style:italic;font-family:inherit;}.css-fdwto5 b,.css-fdwto5 strong{font-family:inherit;font-weight:bold;}.css-fdwto5 a{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-color:#FFF200;} 'Athlete safety comes, at best, a paltry second'

In a recent podcast with Men’s Health , Brent Fikowski spoke at length about how he had formed the Professional Fitness Athletes Association ( PFAA ) to push for more stringent safety protocols, standards, and a "fairer playing field" for athletes. Now, in a statement posted to Instagram shortly after the conclusion of the 2024 CrossFit Games, Fikowski revealed how the PFAA lobbied for more information on the safety protocols for this year’s Games, citing concerns about the temperature and weather following the Games' move from California to Texas. He also mentioned that many veteran athletes offered their services to help consult on matters related to standards and safety.

Fikowski feels the organisers of the CrossFit Games were unhelpful in these matters, stating: 'While I know that CrossFit does not aim to hurt anybody, when they say, "safety is our number one priority," I simply have not believed this to be true for a long time. I believe their top priority has always been their subjective definition of 'the test' and the creative freedom they wish to exert when inventing these workouts. Athlete safety comes, at best, a paltry second, and this past weekend, that strategy went terribly wrong with the most tragic of consequences."

Fikowski detailed a timeline of communication with the CrossFit Games organisers, where the Professional Fitness Athletes’ Association (PFAA) sought clear information on how many events would be held outdoors. The aim was to ensure that athletes, particularly those less accustomed to the extreme Texas heat, had ample time to acclimate and prepare accordingly

Fikowski, shared: 'The risk of being unprepared for the heat and performing outdoors is frightening. Ideally, we would like a commitment on the number of events to be held outdoors, their duration, and the time of day they are to be performed.'

CrossFit's answer: ' We are not releasing event details at this time, but we assure you that athlete safety is our number one priority.'

Fikowski goes on to say that the PFAA provided CrossFit with a two-page document, sharing their concerns in more detail and 'providing simple language they could use to give athletes enough detail to know how to acclimatise safely without divulging secrets of the workouts.' He asks elsewhere in the statement, 'is the secrecy of your workouts more important than increasing the ability of an athlete to prepare for the heat safely?'

Safety Part of a Larger Problem

Fikowski believes that these safety failings are part of a larger institutional problem and attitude towards competition feedback. 'When we propose constructive feedback, the sentiment we're left with is, "Don't worry, we got this. Just trust us. We have a better understanding of this than you do." The problem is no one on their team has competed or coached in this sport at a high level. Also, they won't let athletes be involved in the process because everything they do has to be shrouded in mystery,' says Fikowski. 'It's not a secret that many competing athletes resent the organisation. Then, every so often, when things seem to get too bad, we're asked to "bury the hatchet" and come back to the table to collaborate.'

In a sad moment of reflection, Fikowski adds that his motivation for lobbying for these standards and changes had always been to avoid historical, repeated incidents: 'I was worried about avoiding many of the same safety issues we've tried to solve in the past: a knee injury caused by doing a max back squat on a wet wooden platform in the rain; an injury from landing on a coiled climbing rope.' He adds that the passing of his friend Dukic was a tragic and unexpected occurrence. 'I never thought it would be something as bad as one of our friends drowning in a lake,' he says, 'with the death of Lazar, the trust is gone.'

Moving forward, Fikowski believes there's a lot of work to do. "I plan to play a leadership role via the PFAA to keep pushing for change in a sport I know can be so much better in every way, even if my love of competing has dimmed,' he says. 'We need change, and I, with my colleagues at the PFAA, hope to lead the way on behalf of all athletes, past, present, and future, to prevent something like this from happening again in a sport we love.'

CrossFit's Response

In response to the passing of Dukic CrossFit released an official statement containing the following: 'We are devastated by the passing of Lazar Dukic. Our hearts are with Lazar's entire family, friends, and fellow athletes. Out of respect for the family and in cooperation with the Fort Worth Police Department, we will share updates when possible.' As part of various tribute to Dukic across platforms and during the games, CrossFit shared : 'Lazar was one of our sport's most talented competitors, but was much more than an athlete. He was a son, a brother, and a friend to practically everyone who knew him. Fiercely competitive, incurably joyful and uncommonly kind, Lazar was the sun of any room he was in. The loss of his light is inconceivable.'

The CrossFit Games were suspended following the incident last Thursday, before recommencing on Friday, after an official tribute to Dukic. CrossFit are yet to comment on Fikowski's statement.

With almost 18 years in the health and fitness space as a personal trainer, nutritionist, breath coach and writer, Andrew has spent nearly half of his life exploring how to help people improve their bodies and minds.    

As our fitness editor he prides himself on keeping Men’s Health at the forefront of reliable, relatable and credible fitness information, whether that’s through writing and testing thousands of workouts each year, taking deep dives into the science behind muscle building and fat loss or exploring the psychology of performance and recovery.   

Whilst constantly updating his knowledge base with seminars and courses, Andrew is a lover of the practical as much as the theory and regularly puts his training to the test tackling everything from Crossfit and strongman competitions, to ultra marathons, to multiple 24 hour workout stints and (extremely unofficial) world record attempts.   

 You can find Andrew on Instagram at @theandrew.tracey, or simply hold up a sign for ‘free pizza’ and wait for him to appear.

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