What To Do Besides Study

I used to hate running, but when I had to study for my final exams that determined whether I’d be accepted to medical school I was under a lot of pressure, stressed out all the time, so decided to give running a chance. I started running for like once a week and noticed a big difference in my mood. Now I try to go for a run 3 or 4 times a week. This was harder to achieve before the quarantine because I got home from school late in the afternoon, sometimes at 7 or 8 p.m. and with all the studying to do I didn’t have enough time. Now that we have to stay home, I make sure I go for a rum at least 3 times a week or workout at home if it’s raining outside. Since I’ve started running, I cope with stress easily, it gives me more energy and motivation to be productive. On days when I don’t feel like doing anything and I don’t have any motivation, like we all probably do sometimes, I push myself to go for a run and I swear it helps. I return pleasantly tired, but very motivated to do something productive, to study and I think I also study easier after. 

Some people also experienced a so called phenomenon called the “runner’s high”. It has been described subjectively as pure happiness, elation, a feeling of unity with one’s self and/or nature, endless peacefulness, inner harmony, boundless energy, and a reduction in pain sensation. The runner’s high however, is a private experience, and the evidence for its existence rests on verbal report. To explore the phenomenon scientifically is very restricted because the runner’s high is not experienced by all runners, and this experience does not occur consistently in runners who have experienced it previously. This left scientists wondering why and under which conditions the runner’s high occurs, or whether or not it exists at all. I think that I have never experienced a proper “runner’s high”, but definitely some sensations of happiness lightness and calmness.

Although not everyone experiences the “runner’s high”, almost everyone feels some level of satisfaction after a run or some other endurance activity such as cycling. The reason behind this is, that endurance exercises such as running activate the Endocannabinoid system. Activation of the endocannabinoid system reduces pain sensations and alters emotional and cognitive processes, thus it may cause some of the psychological effects that accompany exercise. I find this topic very interesting, so if you’re interested, you want to read more about Endocannabinoid system here.