"Just 25 Minutes of Moderate Exercise a Day Can Prevent Burnout in Office Workers"

Presenting the Optimal Physical Activity Guidelines for Office Workers by Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Research Team

The simplest solution to reducing burnout among office workers in the midst of busy daily life lies in "everyday movement."

Photo by Kangbuk Samsung Hospital

On August 6, a research team led by Professors Jeon Sangwon, Cho Sungjun, and Kim Eunsu from the Department of Psychiatry at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, announced study findings showing that combining at least 25 minutes of moderate or higher-intensity exercise with 30 to 60 minutes of light physical activity per day can significantly lower the risk of burnout among office workers.

Burnout is a state of mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion caused by prolonged and continuous job-related stress. Unlike simple fatigue or work overload, burnout is a chronic stress response recognized as a serious public health issue that negatively impacts organizations and society as a whole. While it is well known that exercise is effective in preventing depression, there have been no studies to date specifically examining the relationship between burnout and physical activity among office workers.

To address this, the research team led by Professors Jeon Sangwon, Cho Sungjun, and Kim Eunsu at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital compared the association between physical activity and the prevalence of burnout among 7,973 Korean office workers who underwent workplace health checkups at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital between 2020 and 2022.

The researchers conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the correlation between participants' physical activity and burnout status over the past seven days using self-administered questionnaires. Physical activity intensity was categorized as follows: ▲light activity (such as walking), ▲moderate activity (such as light cycling or table tennis), and ▲vigorous activity (such as fast cycling or aerobics). Burnout was classified by evaluating core symptoms such as emotional exhaustion and cynicism.

The results showed that 1,262 participants, or approximately 15.8% of the total, were experiencing burnout. The group with higher levels of physical activity tended to have a lower prevalence of burnout.

Engaging in at least 25 minutes of moderate or higher-intensity exercise combined with 30 to 60 minutes of light activity per day was associated with a 62% reduction in the risk of burnout. Notably, even if the duration of light activity was less than 60 minutes per day, consistently performing at least 25 minutes of moderate or higher-intensity activity alone was also linked to a lower risk of burnout.

Professor Jeon Sangwon of the Department of Psychiatry at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital stated, "This study is significant in that it is the first to analyze the mental health effects of not only whether people exercise, but also the intensity, duration, and various combinations of physical activity under real-world conditions." He added, "Making time to move your body, even a few times a week, can be the first step in protecting your mental well-being."

Meanwhile, the results of this study were published in the June 2025 issue of the international journal Journal of Affective Disorders.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.