BACKGROUND: Almost all postmenopausal women will experience depression. Also, most women lack the ability to control and reduce depression, the disorder can lead to physical damage. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of 8-weeks of Pilates exercise on depression in postmenopausal women in the age of 55 to 65 years. METHODS: In this experimental study, 40 women with depression referred to psychologists in the year 2012, as a target, selected and randomly divided into two equal groups of intervention and control. The intervention group did Pilates exercise program for 8 weeks (3 sessions per week for one hour); the control group did not any exercise. The Beck's Depression Inventory used to evaluate the before- and after-exercise status of the participants. Data analysis was performed using ANOVA test. FINDINGS: There was a significant difference in the rate of depression in the intervention group compared with baseline and the control group after 8 weeks (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The Pilates exercises decreased the depression rate significantly. It seems to be useful as a complementary treatment in postmenopausal women with depression.

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