I run because I have to, NOT because I want to.
Running is a relatively inexpensive sport that helps me stay fit. What’s more, I can do it just about anywhere.
There are many pros to running, but for me, the pursuit of a “runner’s high” is not chief among them.
I’m thrilled when I complete my daily run, namely because it means I can check it off my to-do list. I am not someone who relishes the endorphin rush of completing six, 12 or 18 miles. Nor do I sink into a valley of despair when something prevents me from getting in my miles… unless I am training for a marathon.
Still, I know that there are avid hoofers, who obsess about their runner’s high and aren’t afraid to confirm their addiction. Many of these intense exercisers workout at the same gym I do and have been spending a lot of time discussing a new study done by Tufts University, which tried to prove that runner’s high really does exist.
The study showed that extreme running regimens in rats release brain chemicals that mimic the same sense of euphoria as opiate use. Researchers concluded that moderate exercise could be a “substitute drug” for human heroin and morphine addicts. According to scientists, the sense of being able to run all day (part of a runner’s high) is similar to the pain-relieving state that opiates provide.
So, is this a good thing?
According to researchers, as long as exercise doesn’t interfere with other aspects of your life you are fine trying to pursue a runner’s high. However, if you become dangerously obsessed with trying to get a rise out of running and become a deranged lunatic if you can’t log your daily miles, then you’ve got a problem.
What do you make of the “runner’s high” concept? Do you run to get “high?”
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