Dr. Em Post

Stress doesn’t just affect how we feel. It meaningfully changes how our brains and bodies respond to exercise. On high-stress days, workouts may feel harder, motivation may drop, and recovery may feel slower. This is not a sign of weakness or a lack of discipline. It is a predictable physiological and psychological response.

Understanding how stress interacts with exercise behavior can help reframe those difficult days and support smarter, more sustainable training decisions.

The Psychological Side of Stress and Exercise

When stress is elevated, the brain reallocates resources toward perceived survival demands. Executive functions like planning, motivation, and follow-through are often reduced, creating a larger gap between intention and action. This is why even people who value exercise and enjoy it may struggle to start or complete workouts during stressful periods.

Stress also increases perceived barriers to exercise. Time feels tighter. Fatigue feels heavier. Tasks that normally feel manageable can suddenly feel overwhelming. Importantly, this does not reflect a lack of commitment. It reflects how stress alters cognitive processing and decision-making.

The Physiological Effects of Chronic Stress

From a physiological standpoint, chronic stress is associated with sustained elevations in stress hormones, disrupted sleep, increased fatigue, and slower recovery. Heart rate and blood pressure may remain elevated, and overall energy availability can decline.

Under these conditions, the body is prioritizing protection and regulation. High-intensity or maximal exercise sessions may feel less tolerable, amplify fatigue, or increase negative emotional responses. While these sessions are not inherently “bad,” they are often less sustainable on high-stress days and more likely to be skipped entirely.

The Negative Stress-Exercise Cycle

Stress can reduce exercise participation, and reduced exercise can, in turn, worsen stress — creating a negative feedback loop. When movement feels like another demand rather than a support, people are more likely to disengage altogether.

Breaking this cycle doesn’t require pushing harder. It requires adjusting expectations.

How Movement Can Still Support the Body

Exercise does not need to be intense to be beneficial. Low-to-moderate intensity movement has been shown to improve sleep, reduce inflammation, enhance perceived energy, and support mental clarity—even during periods of elevated stress.

On especially high-stress days, shorter sessions, lighter loads, and gentler forms of movement can provide meaningful benefits without adding to the body’s stress burden. Breathwork, mobility work, light resistance training, walking, and other parasympathetic-supportive activities can help regulate the nervous system rather than overwhelm it.

On High-Stress Days: Adjust, Don’t Abandon

High stress does not mean “don’t move.” It means move differently.

Choosing movement that feels steady, soothing, and supportive is not a step backward. It is an adaptive training decision. Progress is not defined by intensity alone. Consistency, sustainability, and responsiveness to context matter just as much.

Your body isn’t failing you. It’s responding the way it was designed to! When stress is high, honoring that response and adjusting accordingly is not quitting — it’s intelligent, compassionate training.

Selected Peer-Reviewed Sources

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Hamer M, Stamatakis E, Steptoe A. Dose-response relationship between physical activity and mental health: the Scottish Health Survey. Br J Sports Med. 2009 Dec;43(14):1111-4. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2008.046243. Epub 2008 Apr 10. PMID: 18403415.

Jackson, E. M. Stress relief: The role of exercise in stress management. ACSM’s Health & Fitness Journal, 2013 17(3):14-19.

Kabiri, L. S., et al. Perceived stress and physical activity: Associations across populations and contexts. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 2024; 6, 1369205. https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2024.1369205

Stults-Kolehmainen MA, Sinha R. The effects of stress on physical activity and exercise. Sports Med. 2014 Jan;44(1):81-121. doi: 10.1007/s40279-013-0090-5. PMID: 24030837; PMCID: PMC3894304.

Yoon, E.S.; So, W.-Y.; Jang, S. Association between Perceived Psychological Stress and Exercise Behaviors: A Cross-Sectional Study Using the Survey of National Physical Fitness. Life 2023, 13, 2059. https://doi.org/10.3390/life13102059