Exercise may provide smokers with a simple but effective additional tool when trying to quit, according to a new systematic review led by researchers from the Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA) at the University of Adelaide. The review found that structured exercise programs can modestly improve smoking cessation success, while even a single exercise session can rapidly reduce nicotine cravings.
Smoking remains one of the leading preventable causes of death worldwide, yet many people struggle to successfully quit. Existing quit approaches such as counseling, nicotine replacement therapy, and medications can help, but long-term quit rates remain low and many smokers relapse. The researchers argue that exercise can help fill an important gap because it is low-cost, widely accessible and has a number of additional benefits for physical and mental health. Their study was available online at Journal of Sport and Health Science on 07 April 2026.
The review is one of the most comprehensive to date on this topic. The researchers searched 11 databases up to March 2025 and included 59 randomized controlled trials involving 9,083 participants. Of these, 43 trials examined exercise programs over time, while 16 assessed the immediate effects of a single exercise session. Importantly, the review included a wider mix of exercise approaches than previous reviews, including aerobic exercise, resistance training, yoga, high-intensity interval training and lifestyle-based physical activity interventions.
Findings showed that exercise training improved smoking cessation outcomes. In 23 trials involving 6,643 participants, people in exercise groups were 15% more likely to achieve sustained abstinence than those in control groups. In 18 trials involving 4,455 participants, exercise also increased seven-day abstinence by 21%. In addition, the review of eight trials found that people in exercise programs smoked about 2.12 fewer cigarettes per day than controls.
The most immediate benefits were seen for cravings. In single-session studies, exercise produced moderate to large reductions in nicotine craving immediately after exercise, with benefits evident 10, 20, and 30 minutes later. Higher intensity exercise appeared to be particularly effective, causing the greatest drop in craving. These short-term effects could be especially useful during times of intense urge, when the risk of relapse is higher.
The review also found that the type of exercise may matter. Aerobic exercise showed significant benefits for sustained abstinence in long-term training studies, while higher-intensity exercise produced the strongest acute reductions in craving in single-bout studies. This suggests that both exercise mode and intensity may be important when designing smoking cessation programs.
However, the findings also highlight important limitations. Exercise did not significantly reduce long-term craving in exercise studies, and the overall certainty of the evidence for the effects of abstinence was rated as low due to issues such as heterogeneity, risk of bias, imprecision and potential publication bias. The certainty of the evidence was strongest – moderate – for reducing daily cigarette use and short-term craving. The researchers say this means exercise should not yet be considered a stand-alone replacement for standard smoking cessation treatments, but rather a promising complementary strategy.
Another major gap was the complete absence of vaping-specific testing. Although vaping and dual use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes are increasingly common, none of the included studies assessed the effects of vaping cessation. The authors say this is now an urgent priority for future research, alongside studies testing the best exercise type, intensity and form of delivery.
Overall, the study suggests that exercise could be a valuable addition to smoking cessation services. Because exercise can be self-directed, community-based, digitally supported, or integrated into existing health programs, it offers a practical option for people who want non-pharmacological support or an additional strategy alongside counseling and medication. While effects on long-term abstinence were modest, sustained reductions in cigarette use and cravings suggest that exercise could help more people make quit attempts, overcome difficult cravings, and reduce smoking-related harm.
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