--- title: One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood description: New research shows that your strut might have the power to cheer you up or bum you out canonical: https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/ author: Real Simple article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-30T05:18:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:56:15.585Z og:title: One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood og:description: New research shows that your strut might have the power to cheer you up or bum you out og:url: https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc57ed21659ede02/69876447a988ca94246aa379/mood-boost.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3744 og:image:height: 2106 og:image:alt: Close up of women sport shoes running outdoors. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood twitter:description: New research shows that your strut might have the power to cheer you up or bum you out twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc57ed21659ede02/69876447a988ca94246aa379/mood-boost.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood by [Real Simple](https://time.com/author/real-simple/) ## Real Simple Nov 30, 2014 5:18 AM UTC  Close up of women sport shoes running outdoors. Close up of women sport shoes running outdoors.RuslanDashinsky—Getty Images by [Real Simple](https://time.com/author/real-simple/) ## Real Simple Nov 30, 2014 5:18 AM UTC _This_ [_article_](http://www.realsimple.com/health/mind-mood/walking-mood-study) _originally appeared on_ [_RealSimple.com_](http://www.realsimple.com/)_._ A person’s walk is a good indicator of how he or she is feeling—a slumped, sluggish gait might indicate sadness or distress, while someone with a bounce in her step is clearly in high spirits. Now a small new study published in the[ _Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry_](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005791614000809) suggests that the reverse may work, as well. Changing your walk could just change your mood along with it. ([MORE: 30 Secrets Your Body Language Gives Away](http://www.realsimple.com/health/mind-mood/reading-body-language-00000000048262/index.html?xid=time-rs-110414)) Researchers at Queen’s University in Canada primed 39 undergraduate students to mimic the walk of depressed or happy people. Participants were shown a list of positive and negative words, and then walked on a treadmill while scientists measured their gait and posture. ([MORE: 7 Tips to Keep You Calm](http://www.realsimple.com/health/mind-mood/dont-sweat-small-stuff-00100000117122/index.html?xid=time-rs-110414)) Without the subjects’ knowledge, scientists manipulated their walks to be happier or more depressed by asking them to adjust according to a gauge. Certain students were asked to walk so the gauge moved to the right, and others, to the left—and for the scientists, each direction corresponded to a mood. Afterward, participants were asked to recall as many words as they could from the original list. Those who had been manipulated to walk in a more depressed manner remembered more of the negative words. ([MORE: 5 Types of Friends Everyone Should Have](http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/life-strategies/inspiration-motivation/types-friends-00100000101648/index.html?xid=time-rs-110414)) While we’ve known that walking as a form of exercise can be a [mood booster and stress reliever](http://www.realsimple.com/health/fitness-exercise/mental-benefits-exercise), this suggests that even walking to lunch can have an impact on your mind. A depressed walking style (with less arm movement and shoulders rolled forward) might lead to a depressed mood, instead of simply being an indicator. So give it a try: Pull your shoulders back and stand up straight on your next stroll. ([MORE: Why Your Sibling is Good for Your Health (According to Science)](http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/family/benefits-of-siblings?xid=time-rs-110414)) “If you can break that self-perpetuating cycle, you might have a strong therapeutic tool to work with depressive patients,” study co-author Nikolaus Troje [said in a statement](http://www.cifar.ca/change-your-walking-style-change-your-mood). ([MORE: How Yoga Helps to Keep Your Brain Healthy](http://www.realsimple.com/health/fitness-exercise/stretching-yoga/yoga-brain?xid=time-rs-110414)) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/"},"headline":"One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood","datePublished":"2014-11-30T05:18:43.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:56:15.585Z","description":"New research shows that your strut might have the power to cheer you up or bum you out","url":"https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/","keywords":["Living","health","advice","mood"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc57ed21659ede02/69876447a988ca94246aa379/mood-boost.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Real Simple","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/real-simple/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc57ed21659ede02/69876447a988ca94246aa379/mood-boost.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Close up of women sport shoes running outdoors.","caption":"Close up of women sport shoes running outdoors.","creditText":"RuslanDashinsky—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-living/","name":"Living"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3559007/boost-your-mood/","name":"One Sneaky Way to Boost Your Mood"}}]}] ```