I have cyclothymia, and my kid and my sister have Bipolar 1. My kid and I are both on an anticonvulsant that conveniently is also a mood stabilizer; my sister does not take medication, but has a good handle on her symptoms.
- My sister says that yes, exercise is a major part of how she manages her symptoms.
- My kid seems much more regulated after exercise when she is not in a manic episode. When she is manic, she can go for nearly two days at full speed (without sleep) before she collapses - I mean like running around the room, jumping onto the bed, jumping off the bed, running around the room, jumping on the bed...repeat for almost two days. I kid you not. A sane workout doesn't touch that and it is very, very bad on the body, especially for a child. But when her meds and sleep are both squared away, exercise helps.
- So there are two ways I have used exercise in the past to help hypomanic episodes if they turn bad (intense anxiety instead of, for instance, cleaning the entire house). I used to go running until I calmed down, but it helped because I was pushing my body too hard to maintain a panicked state, and it was not healthy. Now, as long as I catch it early, I can do swings and get-ups. It helps because it gives my body something to do with the adrenaline - that *doesn't* play into the flight response like running does - and gives my mind something to focus on. Weight helps the nervous system for many people and I find heavy swings to be especially good for this.
As for depression, while I feel that exercise can head it off for me to some degree, I generally don't work out while in a depressive episode because it feels bad for my body in the same way that it feels bad to work out when I am sick. My body is demanding rest then. I used to call depressive episodes the "emotional flu" and I'd treat it accordingly: more sleep (but not too much), nutritious food, maybe a walk or an easygoing bike ride. Mine are short though, so it's easier for me to do that than it is for some people.
In short, yes, working out can have a profoundly positive effect on my mental health, provided I am sensible about it.