I suppose I’m in the “bit o’ both” camp. I don’t ever really get a real runner’s high going, but if I’m doing exercise regularly, it feels pretty good during and after.
When I’m getting back into a routine after a slothful winter’s hibernation (come on, body, it’s time!), the exercise is definitely less pleasant and motivation is very difficult to come by. However, I’ve learned that being mindful (as in “Mindfulness Meditation”) while exercising and paying close attention to stretching, I can all but eliminate the discomfort of doing exercise when I’m not used to it. Mindfulness also helps to eliminate boredom, although I do bring a book for when I’m on the exerbike.
The problem for me is motivation - exercise is almost never really a chore, once I’m actually doing it. It almost always feels like a chore when I’m just thinking I should be doing it.
Lifting weights doesn’t give me a high, although I like charting my progress. Moderate cardio makes me feel pumped and energetic afterwards. Intense cardio leaves me happy but physically weak and a bit lightheaded.
I’m not overweight, but I am out of shape. I’ve never found exercise to feel especially good. I’m usually out of breath, sweaty, sore, sometimes nauseous, and possibly in pain (I take taijitsu. Rolling and some of the other exercises hurt because either I’m banging something against the floor, or a particular muscle group is getting sore because we do the same thing forever, or I’ve hit something against something.) Some exercise is fun enough for me to overlook that - DDR was fun, except I didn’t do it regularly, and I like taijitsu. When I rode my bike to school or work, it was a pain, but I didn’t give myself another choice.
I like discovering I’ve gotten in better shape. For example: I wore kimono to a Halloween party. After about a half hour my back and shoulders were burning from me sitting up straight. I’ve built up those muscles enough that when I wore kimono for most of the day today I was fine (if a bit tired.)
I love running. I feel great while I am running and after running. When I run, I feel good the rest of the day. If it hurts, I don’t feel it. I hate having to take a day off from running. I like getting up really early, when it’s still dark and everyone is sleeping. I go running and can be back and in the shower before anyone gets up. When I run, I am totally relaxed and totally alone. I run for hours. I love it.
I definitely think that the key is in whether you are in shape or not.
If you aren’t used to exercising, it is painful and unpleasant.
However, my experience has been that if I stick with an exercise routine, once I get used to it I do get a mild “runner’s high” after working out that makes me feel more energetic and motivated. Plus the more in shape you are, the more work you can do without getting all sweaty and gross.
I have dysautonomia, and exercise is always hard for me. “Exercise intolerance” is one of the symptoms. It never feels good or leaves me refreshed. I always have a hard time recovering from exertion; whatever I deplete does not come back quickly.
Now mind you, I’m in “good shape” all things considered. Before I was put on a beta blocker I used to walk/jog almost 5 miles during my lunch hour with my coworkers on a regular basis, and stay fairly active. I’m thin and take care of myself, so that’s not it.
Just today I was reading an article on exercise intolerance in cases of chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia that provides some interesting information about how they are just now finding ways to objectively measure the difference between normal people and those with exercise intolerance.
I find exercise boring and dread it. After I’m done I usually feel energized for an hour or two. But it takes a tremendous will to make me do it and I am constantly in danger of quitting. If I take a few days off, it is very tough for me to start again. (I’m feeling guilty because I had a deadline and the code just wasn’t working and so I missed today’s walk… I will have to do better tomorrow.)
I’ve been running since Thanksgiving. I still hate it. I keep doing it because it’s good for me and because I like it at all the times I’m not actually doing it. I have never felt a “runner’s high”, although there have been times when I’ve felt what I think is a pleasurable “second wind” - when it stops hurting and starts going right and you feel like you can go on forever.
Nope, never got a good feeling from exercise at all. Whether I was in shape or not.
The best effect I’ve ever gotten was a vanity thrill of bulking up and getting cut when I used to lift (which is pretty much the only reason I was doing it in the first place).
There are two kinds of “exercise” that I like - one has virtually no caloric benefits for the level at which I’m able to do it (dance) and one is just incredibly inconvenient (swimming).
But other kinds, no. No exercise high. No physical or emotional feeling of good or well-being. In fact, sometimes I end up in a post exercise depression (fighting back tears on the drive home and mentally unable to do anything at all once I get there. Even with an easy workout) And it doesn’t matter how in shape I am. I occasionally feel superior to those people who didn’t exercise and sometimes I feel proud that I’ve managed to exercise for X days in a row. But that isn’t really quite the same “feeling good” that the exercise-high people promise.
I’m one of the people who feel worse after exercising, which is one of the primary reasons I am in terrible shape. There are exercises that I enjoy doing (arobics or basketball or biking, and I’ll spend all day in the pool swimming, and I can dance for hours). But all of the above will always ultimately make me feel bad, even when I’m not pushing very hard and am doing it every day.
For instance, I just got back from my first night of my new yoga class. The meditation portion at the end felt very nice, and my good mood lasted about ten minutes. After that, a mild headache kicked in and I felt (and still feel) like crap, which will probably last another hour or so. I’m not in any body pain - I can feel a twinge in my bad knee, but otherwise my muscles are stretched out and relaxed and pleasantly tired. But overall I feel like I have a minor case of flu.
Hate it. Dread starting, hate doing it, just feel tired and sweaty afterward. The only good part is when I’m finally done and can wash. I pretty much always felt that way for as long as I can remember.
If your blood is pounding in your ears it probably means you’re pushing yourself much too hard, your heart-rate is probably through the roof.
Frankly, I’ll say that if the exercising is painful, you’re doing it wrong. Or you’re doing exercises which are wrong for you. I train at a level that does not result in my pulse shooting up to 170 for 20 minutes. It can be a little dull, and spending 25 minutes on the stationary cycle with my pulse around 150 isn’t easy, but it is not painful nor does it leave me too out of breath to talk while I’m doing it.
It’s not like I’m some fitness professional or anything, that’s just my opinion.
To answer the OP, I do find exercising makes me feel good. Tired, obviously, and sometimes light-headed which I think (but am not sure) is the ‘exercise high’ some people talk about. But never ever painful unless I’m physically hurting myself.
In high school, we were given the choice of walking/jogging around the track, or participating in team sports (tennis and the like). I always jogged the track. I also walked several miles a day. Later, in college and young married life, I did a lot of walking and jogging. I was in great physical shape, and was easily able to go miles at a time. It NEVER, EVER felt good. The only reason I did it was because I was forced to in gym, and later I did it because I just flat out did NOT have the money even for train fare.
I’m able to work out on my Cardio Cruiser if I have a good show or movie on, so that I’ll have something to distract me. But still, it never feels good, and I certainly never want to start an exercise session.
Doing something completely new hurts the first couple of times, but after that it starts feeling better. I feel a hell of a lot better now after biking to and from work than when I take the train. Partly it’s because it leaves me feeling more alert and energetic, but also because of that residual feeling of “I did something.”
Then there’s also the sense of accomplishment when I do something I hadn’t done before. I may have been in a lot of pain after finishing my first 200km ride, but I still felt great.
Excercising makes me feel great, which i guess makes me pretty lucky.
It’s been a long journey for me. I hated sports in high school but I started swimming laps. My dad has type 2 diabetes and I didn’t want to get it – I would actually chant “diabetes diabetes” to myself while I swam sometimes. When I started college I would go ride the elliptical (or do you run on the elliptical?). I didn’t really enjoy working out until I discovered martial arts. Then I started cycling and only after getting in really good cycling shape was I able to enjoy running. Now, I feel a bit crazed if I go a few days without exercise. And I’ve found that no matter how tired I am, I’ll still enjoy a short run after work.
I was an athlete up through college and exercising never felt good beyond what would be felt when one stops hitting oneself with a hammer.
What I have noticed with age is that each time I go bike riding I feel like crap for the first 5 miles and then it gets easier. I’d hardly call it a good feeling as much as feeling less bad.
I have been running for years and I never felt that legendary “runner’s high”
That said, I have always seen my limits in three dimensions: sometimes I lose cardiovascular endurance and run out of breath; others my joints get too sore; still others, the muscles are totally exhausted.
I’m my happiest when these three factors are in balance and I finish my run without feeling that I was held back. And it usually feels good when I’m running.
Should any of the three limits kick in (on an off day), the run becomes miserable, or worse, it becomes a slow walk back to the car from three miles away.
