I was talking with some fellow-exercisers recently and the subject of runner's high came up--those natural endorphins from exercise. Everybody else at the table said they got it. I never do. I don't think I ever have, even in high school when I'd bike 20 miles without sitting down. (Whatever my other faults, I had a pretty good ass back then.) One of the guys I was talking to was puzzled and said, so you just power through your workout?
I guess I do. I exercise at 5:30 AM. Now that I think about it, that's pretty much the low-energy point of my day. I like the sensation of muscle fatigue I get later in the day, but it doesn't feel good while I'm exercising. Another guy I work with loves to eat pizza for lunch because the carbs let him go home after work and lift harder.
What's up with that? Should I be doing something differently to get that high?
I wonder if it might be connected to the time of day in which you're doing it. I've always found hard cardio exercise to go down much better either at the end of the work day, or the end of the day period, as in not long before bed. I rarely exercise in the morning, because I've found it to be less effective in making me feel good. Of course, it may well be entirely mental conditioning on my part.
ReplyDeleteI've also heard that - some people get their best workouts early in the morning, some later in the day. I was never good at getting up early, so (back when I used to work out) I would go to the fitness club after work. A lot of times I would be literally forcing myself to go, & sometimes would change my mind in the changing room (ha) but when I went through with it, I'd be there for a couple hours or so & leave so pumped & energized that I would go home & clean house. Double benefit - triple if you count the mental lift that I got as well.
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