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How Exercise Effects Your Mood

http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/web2/mmcgovern.html

endorphines are released into the brain, there is a theory stating they adjoin onto other chemicals released for pain receptors to reduce how you feel it and it could be similar with exercise. you are saying doing exercise for at least 30 minutes before getting the high effect. It is addictive. However over time you become more tolerant to it and it takes longer to get the high.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endorphin

This gives a little back ground on endorphines for anyone interested. :)
 
I have experienced the runner's high.
I believe that the #1 activity every human needs to do is run, because that's what we were built for.
Christopher McDougal wrote this book called "Born to Run" that talks all about how we are evolved to run long distances.

Evidence includes: The most advanced cooling system on the planet(we did evolve in Africa, and all) with our body covered in sweat glands and minimal body hair.
Our oxygen processing is very efficient, our breath to stride ratio is usually 1:2 or 1:3, whereas every quadruped has a 1:1 ratio.
Our feet have a toe pointed forwards to allow maximum pushing force and our legs are full of springy tendons, our closest relatives, the apes, do not have either of these benefits, which is why they don't run.
Our asses are our biggest muscles and we only use them to run.
Our bipedalism is more mechanically efficient over longer distances.
Our pelvis is perfectly suited for running, and our sense of balance and swinging arms help stabilize our trunk and head while running.
We have better endurance than almost every other animal, especially in the heat. When an animal hits 107 degree body temperature, they sit down and will not move, their instincts won't allow them to. The way we hunted before we invented the slingshot or spear was to run an animal down in the heat until it stopped moving, and then beat it to death with a rock.

He also talks about how our higher cognitive functions are a direct result from our hunting strategies, which often take about 3 hours or more. We had to learn to think far ahead of time, which gave rise to logic and reason, and from those we derived morality, language, and all of the things that we have now.

Running is amazing. Once you get good at it, that is. Which takes time, and a lot of effort. But you have to put in that effort if you want to see any improvement in anything, anyway, so you're gonna have to get up and move eventually.

Exercise in general is proven to elevate mood. Chris McDougal's wife even noticed that he was feeling better once he started running long distance, and said "If this is what happens when you run marathons, I'll lace your shoes for you in the morning".

Running definitely boosted my confidence. I feel capable, now. Along with a proper weightlifting regiment, any human can turn into an athlete.
Because we are all athletes. We are born to run.

EDIT: Sorry for the long windedness, I am high.
 
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We should all be strong of mind and body.
In my perfect society we would wake up, do LSD, and go for a run with your entire community. The government would give LSD to the populace for free or dirty cheap. We would talk and exercise and trip nuts and basically be courteous people. We would live off the land, with just enough infrastructure for shelter and the labs needed to make the LSD.

Like the Taruhamara Indians of the copper canyon in Mexico. With LSD.

I doubt there would be war.
 
^ Sorry to burst your bubble, but promoting LSD is not in with the harm reduction aspect of Bluelight. I personally don't find LSD to be a harmless drug either as I had a few VERY negative side effects to it that I will keep out of this thread and hope you keep the LSD talk out of here as well. Sorry!
 
A Blind Guy said:
We should all be strong of mind and body.
In my perfect society we would wake up, do LSD, and go for a run with your entire community. The government would give LSD to the populace for free or dirty cheap. We would talk and exercise and trip nuts and basically be courteous people. We would live off the land, with just enough infrastructure for shelter and the labs needed to make the LSD.

Like the Taruhamara Indians of the copper canyon in Mexico. With LSD.

I doubt there would be war.
Click to expand...

All you have to do is find that society. And when you get there, I won't be there to greet you.

I like your other post though. Great evidence! Maybe I should lay off the bike and get into running. :P
 
Eh, people have been doing similar for hundreds or thousands of years, just not with LSD. And there's really no need for it when DMT, psilocybin and mescaline can be easily found in nature. It worked well enough for them, or do you just mean you wouldn't want to live like that?
 
Re OP, running/biking have been an increasingly important aspect of my life for about 3wks now. I typically favored just weights and yoga, but since adding biking/running* into the mix, the every-minute, every-day sense of well-being has been unmistakable. I've also found that the running/biking have impacted me in other ways that positively affect my mood (makes me sleep/eat better, smoke even less cigs - these effects weren't automatic, it's just that I wouldn't want to "negate" the positives of the exercise, so I refrain from other bad stuff more than normal ;P )
//*fwiw, my routine <for the cardio stuff> is about 5d/wk, maybe 6. If I'm biking I'll go about 40min-1hr, and w/ jogging I'll do about 25min w/ occasional sprints and occasional "1 block speed walks" - though as mentioned, I'm a smoker still, that could explain the noticeable effects of such <relatively> small amounts of cardio. Oh and I do maybe 4d/wk weight training, pretty light stuff at the moment while integrating the cardio, and yoga maybe 3-5d/wk depending on time/mental state. And by "yoga", I mean "toss my headphones on w/ relaxing music and have a soothing stretch-session", not true yoga but not just 'stretching'.
 
skillet said:
Eh, people have been doing similar for hundreds or thousands of years, just not with LSD. And there's really no need for it when DMT, psilocybin and mescaline can be easily found in nature. It worked well enough for them, or do you just mean you wouldn't want to live like that?
Click to expand...

Has there been a society who's sole tenants include exercise and tripping? Because I would like to live like that, very much indeed.

I would try to find the Taruhamara but they are notoriously secluded. And I doubt they would want any LSD. Or they would, who knows.
 
Why would that be as oppressive as the system we have now?
The society would be all about togetherness, and camaraderie. That's why we would exercise and trip together, those two things bring people closer to one another.

But this is all hypothetical anyway.
 
Simply_Live said:
Not in a society like there, where everyone does it every day. It'd be as oppressing as what we have now.
Click to expand...

Oh ok, I didn't realise blind guy was talking about literally every day! I agree that's not a good idea, but excercise every day, sure.
 
A Blind Guy said:
Why would that be as oppressive as the system we have now?
The society would be all about togetherness, and camaraderie. That's why we would exercise and trip together, those two things bring people closer to one another.

But this is all hypothetical anyway.
Click to expand...

I agree on how exercise it a good idea every day. However, the idea that we "should" exercise every day, as a society, is grounds for corrupt power systems and loss of personal freedom. If you don't want to exercise, you shouldn't have to! It's just good for you and what we're here to do. Just not all the time.

skillet said:
Oh ok, I didn't realise blind guy was talking about literally every day! I agree that's not a good idea, but excercise every day, sure.
Click to expand...

Have you ever seen "The Beach"? It's about a hypothetical society of togetherness and drugs. It ends up failing because the major issue is desire and lust over peace and love. Desire is what causes suffering.
 
If we all started exercising as children, we would all like exercise.
And we're supposed to exercise in groups.

The cool thing about humans is how we hunt, with slow deliberate chases until an animal plops down in the heat.
It's only about 10min miles, something anyone can do. The entire tribe could move as one, like athletic nomads.
 
If we all got a different attitude about exercise, we'd all like to "exercise."

I was introduced to walking long distances for no purpose other than the walk at a young age. I'm talking being four or five and walking four to six miles just for the heck of it. Did this with my mom, brother (two years older than I am), and a neighbor for a couple years. At thirteen, I started biking to/from town (three miles each way), not for exercise but as a method of transportation. As the years have gone on, I've continued biking for transportation and for enjoyment. When I think of what I do for "exercise," nothing really comes to mind. Biking and walking are methods of transportation and enjoyment--"Exercise" in my mind, and I feel in the minds of many others, is not fun.

That is what I think needs to change. The connotation of the word "exercise." Kind of like how the term "diet" has become synonymous with "lower caloric intake" instead of simply your "caloric intake" which is what it originally meant.
 
I like exercise. Lifting weights is great fun. Running is fun, too.
Swimming, wrestling, is all fun.

Exercise isn't fun when you aren't in any sort of physical condition. I've been there. Exercise sucked.
Now it's awesome. I just had to exercise more, lol.
 
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