The impact of mindfulness training and physical exercise on student academic burnout and academic achievement: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Although the benefits of physical exercise for students’ physical and mental health have been widely recognized, studies that systematically investigate the overall effects of physical exercise on students’ academic burnout and academic achievement remain insufficient. Most existing research focuses on a single dimension, lacking systematic integration and quantitative synthesis. Objective This systematic review and meta-analysis (PROSPERO registration: CRD420261292068) aims to comprehensively evaluate the effects of physical exercise on various indicators of students’ academic burnout and academic achievement. Methods We searched three databases: PubMed, Web of Science, and CNKI. Peer-reviewed Chinese and English randomized controlled trials published up to January 29, 2026 were included. Study quality was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Results Of the initially identified 12,086 studies, 35 met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed that Physical exercise significantly reduced students’ overall academic burnout (SMD = −0.45, 95% CI [−0.83, −0.07], p = 0.02) and was associated with a statistically significant but very small (trivial) improvement in overall academic achievement (SMD = 0.17, 95% CI [0.01, 0.34], p = 0.04). Physical exercise also showed statistically significant but very small beneficial effects on students’ spelling performance (SMD = 0.13, 95% CI [0.02, 0.24], p = 0.02), while descriptive analysis indicated favorable effects on mathematics performance, but had no significant effects on emotional burnout, cynicism, exhaustion, professional efficacy, reading, language skills, or cognitive inhibition. Further subgroup analysis revealed that physical exercise mainly promoted overall academic achievement and mathematics performance in primary school students. Conclusion Physical exercise may significantly alleviate academic burnout and yield small but statistically significant improvements in academic achievement among students, especially overall academic achievement, mathematics performance and spelling performance in primary school students. These findings provide important evidence for promoting physical exercise among students to support their academic development and mental health. Systematic review registration Identifier: CRD420261292068.