Young teachers in colleges and universities are facing increasing occupational pressure, which is not only harmful to their health but also leads to low work efficiency. In order to promote the psychological health of young teachers in colleges and universities, this paper mainly adopts the literature method, summarises and analyses previous literature with the keywords of occupational stress, physical exercise and young teachers in colleges and universities, studies the effect of physical exercise on the occupational stress of young teachers in colleges and universities, and explores the mediating role of mental toughness and self-efficacy in relieving occupational stress. The study concludes that physical exercise is important in relieving workplace stress and that this effect is based on the role of mental toughness and self-efficacy. Physical activity can increase the level of mental toughness while improving physical fitness, which in turn enhances an individual's ability to cope with stress; it can also increase self-efficacy, which further reduces an individual's feelings of stress. Therefore, we suggest that schools should strengthen the promotion of physical activity to help young teachers better face challenges at work.