yea i think , who were you ? <| sep |> I am assuming ur post was edited by someone who loves small Haitian boys <| sep |> It ' s a horrible thing until you get good at it . and then it ' s only horrible some of the time . Honestly you can substitute regular exercise in which you exert yourself for running , I just chose that one because it ' s cheap and convenient all you need is a decent pair of shoes and the determination to do it . Swimming and cycling are FAR easier on the joints , and team sports come with builtin social groups which can be helpful when the depression is alienating you . Weight loss is simply energy in vs energy out . Of course it gets more complicated than that but honest calorie counting and working out your base metabolic rate is the foundation . then exercise just buys you some extra calories so you don ' t have to eat like a sparrow and can enjoy the odd beer without feeling guilty ! Just while I ' m rambling There is a point of fitnessability where two things happen . Firstly you stop having to think about it . You can just run without worrying about your stride or your breathing or your speed or how long until you get to stop . and you can just settle down into a rhythm and enjoy the running and secondly you have the option for an easy run if you want to again , substitute sportappropriate terms as required . I think that ' s about the point that the real benefits kick in . There ' s hormonal and psychological benefits throughout , but the ability to use exercise to destress and clear the mind didn ' t kick in for me until I didn ' t have to think about what I was doing any more . Sorry , most of that had little to do with your response , just a chain of thoughts .