Here’s a headscratcher for you: Exercise can both cause and reduce inflammation. And both of those scenarios are actually good for you.

Kind of confusing, right? If you’re wondering whether or not exercise reduces inflammation, the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. It takes a little deeper understanding of your own physiology to really grasp what’s going on beneath the surface. 

So here’s the deep dive you need on how exercise reduces inflammation—and how much exercise you need to see those benefits.

Does Exercise Reduce Inflammation?

If you stay consistent with regular exercise, yes, physical activity will ultimately help lower inflammation over time.

But let’s back up: First, it helps to understand what we mean by “inflammation.” 

What Is Inflammation?

Inflammation is part of your body’s natural defense system that helps you heal from injuries or illness. It’s a chemical response to some sort of irritant or trigger, like a germ, a sunburn, or a scraped knee.

There are two types of inflammation: acute and chronic. Acute inflammation happens in response to an injury or illness, and it usually involves heat, swelling, pain, and redness. Imagine a sprained ankle, for example: It’s swollen, warm to the touch, and uncomfortable to put weight on. But as that sprain heals, the inflammatory process winds down and eventually stops, and your ankle returns to its normal size, temperature, and function.

Chronic inflammation, on the other hand, lasts for months or even years, even when your body isn’t in danger, and it’s not always as obvious. Sometimes it results in pain or in inflammatory conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, but other times it silently contributes to any number of health concerns. In fact, chronic inflammation can lead to heart disease, autoimmune diseases, and certain cancers, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Exercise’s Impact on Inflammation

Any given workout will cause some acute inflammation. That’s because of the strain physical activity places on your muscles. 

“Exercise causes temporary microdamage to the muscles—this is not something to be afraid of, as the body has the ability to repair this damage, and it actually helps us to become stronger,” explains Elizabeth Gardner, MD, an associate professor of orthopaedics and sports medicine at Yale University School of Medicine and head team physician for Yale Athletics. “But this initial damage unleashes an inflammatory cascade to help handle the strain of the exercise and repair the injury.”

That brief hit of inflammation is a good thing: As your body heals that muscle damage, building those fibers back stronger, the result is bigger, stronger muscles and better performance at the gym and in day-to-day activities.

You might actually feel this temporary inflammation: Ever notice your muscles are sore the day or two after a workout? This delayed onset muscle soreness is the result of inflammation in your muscles as they recover and repair, says Schuyler Archambault, a physical therapist, certified strength and conditioning specialist, and owner of Arch Physical Therapy and Fitness.

A number of factors influence how long this brief inflammatory stage lasts, she adds, including your current fitness level, your diet, how hydrated you are, how much sleep you’re getting, and whether or not you’re under a lot of emotional stress.

But when you exercise regularly, your response starts to shift: Your muscles are used to the strain and repair faster, so there’s not as much acute inflammation. And your circulation improves, which clears out chemical markers of inflammation in your blood more quickly, Archambault says.

How does your body know to do this? Muscle inflammation seems to trigger special immune cells called “T cells” into action, which helps your body tolerate exercise and build endurance, Dr. Gardner says. That was the finding in 2023 research published in Science Immunology in mice, both immediately after exercise and after establishing an exercise routine. And a 2021 lab study in Science Advances found exercise essentially turns on a muscle cell’s ability to fight inflammation right after the activity. (It’s worth noting that animal and lab studies don’t always directly apply to real-world human scenarios, however, and more research is needed.)

In the long term, your body composition may also play a role. “Aerobic exercise helps to reduce body fat, which contributes to inflammation,” Dr. Gardner says. In other words, if you’re building lean muscle, you may find yourself with less inflammation-producing body fat overall. That said, some older research suggests the inflammation-lowering powers of exercise still happen regardless of weight loss.

However it happens, the end result is a good thing for your general health and wellbeing because “too much inflammation can lead to chronic disease,” Dr. Gardner says. It stands to reason that if conditions like diabetes or fibromyalgia may be due (at least in part) to excessive, chronic inflammation, reducing inflammation may also reduce your risk, she says. Chronic inflammation is also linked to arthritis, osteoporosis, dementia, and depression, among other concerning conditions.

Which Types of Exercise Reduce Inflammation?

There isn’t necessarily one single best type of workout for reducing chronic, system-wide inflammation, Archambault says. Even gentle modalities like yoga can tax your body in the short-term. “You’re working your muscles, so you’re going to create some degree of an inflammatory response,” she explains. 

On the other hand, if you’re dealing with acute inflammation, like a swollen knee, a physical therapist would likely have you do some gentle mobility exercises to reduce that localized inflammation, she says.

But when you’re trying to ease inflammation all over, consistency is more important than modality, because any workout can benefit you in the long-term. Try to exercise regularly (more on that below) and get a balance of strength and cardio to maximize the health benefits of movement, including reduced inflammation, Archambault says.

And if you live with an inflammatory condition like lupus, it may take some trial and error to find activities that you enjoy that don’t aggravate your symptoms. In addition to walking, consider cycling, Pilates, and stretching, according to the Lupus Foundation of America—all of which you can find on the Peloton App.

Do Certain Workouts Increase Long-Term Inflammation?

You may have seen social media influencers claiming that HIIT workouts in particular raise inflammation. It’s true that “higher impact and higher intensity exercise will cause more inflammation,” Dr. Gardner says. But this is a temporary effect. “The body has a remarkable ability to repair itself, given the rest and nutrition to do so, so in moderation, these remain excellent sources of exercise,” she adds.

In fact, some preliminary Duke University research presented at a conference in 2019 suggests HIIT can help reduce systemic inflammation among people with rheumatoid arthritis.

“You’d really have to be doing something very hard like HIIT every single day and not allow yourself to recover” to find yourself in a “constant flare-up of chronic inflammation,” Archambault says. “I think social media makes it seem like it’s easier for this to happen than it actually is.”

As part of a balanced fitness routine with different types of workouts at varying intensities, even heavy lifting, HIIT, and sprinting can contribute to lower chronic inflammation over time.

How Often Do You Need to Exercise to Notice Inflammation Improvements?

Now that you know what to do and why, you’re probably wondering how much of a time commitment this inflammation-lowering process is going to take. There’s good news here: You don’t need to go all out, all the time. “As little as 20 minutes of moderate exercise, such as fast walking, has been shown to produce some anti-inflammatory effects,” Dr. Gardner says. 

That was the finding of a small 2017 study published in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, which looked at changes in chemical markers of inflammation after 20 minutes of moderate exercise on a treadmill. (You can get started right away with tons of great walking workouts on the Peloton App!)

Ideally, you’d aim for about 30 minutes of aerobic exercise five times a week for the biggest benefits, which is in line with general physical activity guidelines for most healthy adults. “If you’re exercising sporadically, you’re not going to see the same adaptation,” Archambault explains.

And while everyone’s different, after about four weeks of consistently sticking to this type of routine, your body will likely start to adapt and transition to a more anti-inflammatory state in response to exercise, she adds. 

Healthy habits like getting plenty of sleep, managing your stress, and refueling your body with a nutrient-dense diet also help reduce chronic inflammation risks. Prioritize fatty fish, fruits and veggies, and nuts and seeds if you want to follow an anti-inflammatory diet, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

The Takeaway

So, does exercise reduce inflammation? The answer is a bit complicated, but yes, regular physical activity will generally lower inflammation over time.

In the short-term, exercise temporarily increases inflammation as your body responds to the stress on your muscles and cardiovascular system. This acute inflammation generally goes away within a few days after your workout. Chronic inflammation, on the other hand, is long-lasting and linked to several health conditions.

Over time and with a consistent effort, your body adapts to the strain of exercise and launches an anti-inflammatory response to activity instead. Working out may stimulate muscle cells to fight acute and chronic inflammation, and you may have less inflammation-producing body fat. There’s no particular workout you should do if your goal is reducing inflammation. Instead, it’s about getting a balance of different types of activity and sticking to a regular exercise routine, as well as managing stress, prioritizing sleep, and eating a balanced, anti-inflammatory diet.