# Why does exercising make me feel like crap?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [December 8, 2004, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743 "2004-12-08T14:24:56Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@Tiggrkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tiggrkitty)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/21 "2004-12-09T11:13:15Z")
> [@Jadis](#):
>
> You know, every time you see people talk about getting into an exercise routine, you invariably see them gush about how great and energized they feel. Am I the only person alive who feels like crap when they work out?
>
> Seriously…exercising doesn’t make me feel good. I mean, I know in my _head_ that it’s good for me, but physically, all it does is make me tired. I can feel proud of the fact that I made the effort, but other than that, there’s really no reward. Instead of feeling energized and fit and blah blah blah…all I feel is worn out. And hungry.
>
> Exercising doesn’t charge me up for the day, it makes me want to stuff my face and then take a nap.
>
> Am I alone here?
IMACPT
Just right up front it is hard to pin point why you are tired. There just isn’t enough information. A lot of things impact workouts and fatigue.
Have you had a physical lately? How often do you work out? How long have you been on your current routine? Do you drink water during exercise? Do you eat balanced meals and if not do you take vitamins and supplements? What is your BMI? Do you know what your target range is and do you stay within that range? How many times a week do you work out? What type of workouts are you doing?
Email me if you want and we can discuss this in more detail.
---
### Author:  [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/22 "2004-12-09T14:14:10Z")
> [@cazzle](#):
>
> I’ve been the same since childhood. Exercising puts me on a real downer, makes me feel tired, miserable and grumpy. In primary school our teachers used to make us run around the perimetre of the school once a week, and every single time my legs would break out in an itchy red rash.
Some people are actually allergic to exercise:
[link](http://walking.about.com/cs/med/a/sensitchylegs.htm). Perhaps you have a problem similar to one of these?
I heard the most common allergy is the exercise-induced rash - it’s caused by the rise in body temperature. You can also experience an allergic reaction to something you’ve consumed that’s actually triggered by exercise, which causes the rash, and sometimes anaphylactic shock.
---
### Author:  [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/23 "2004-12-09T16:17:57Z")
How long a period of time have you consistently exercised for? My WAG is that you haven’t stuck with an exercise program long enough to see benfits. (I’m basing this on nothing, it’s just a guess like I said) In my experience, exercise can make you feel awfulat first. It sometimes takes a month or two (or longer in some cases) to get used to the exercise and start feeling good about it.
Otherwise, maybe you have some other energy limiting thing like a thyroid issue or Epstein-Barr (IANAD, just more wild ass speculation…).
---
### Author:  [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/24 "2004-12-09T17:16:16Z")
Hve you considered that you might be low in iron? I remember reading (in college at some point I think) that the effect of iron deficiency is disproportionate to the amount of the deficiency. In other words, you can be very slightly deficient but really feel exhausted all the time. If you rarely eat red meat and don’t take a multi, I would consider a multivitamin.
---
### Author:  [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/25 "2004-12-09T17:19:31Z")
I always tell the exercise junkies at work that I will take up jogging as soon as I see a happy jogger. They all look like they are being tortured.
---
### Author:  [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/26 "2004-12-09T17:56:34Z")
Man, I _hate_ working out. Never felt an endorphin rush in myl ife from it. And I once made it all the way through April, so it’s not that “just starting” thing. (Right now I’m just restarting, but it feels the same as working out every other fay for fourmonths - awful, in other words.) I do everything I can to make it better - the iPod does help, and having somebody with me does too, but it’s still at its core absolutely loathsome. It tires me out, I don’t get any sort of energy boost, etc. I do try to eat before and after - especially now when dating an athletic trainer. 🙂 I know women don’t get enough protein so I try to get more. I eat well. I have a good routine, I go to a good gym, etc, etc, etc - I just _hate_ it. I know it’s good for me but it makes me feel awful. People are always coming up to me at the gym and asking if I’m okay. (I’m not overweight, either.)
I’m bred to be solely ornamental, I think.
---
### Author:  [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2004, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/27 "2004-12-09T18:52:35Z")
> [@tremorviolet](#):
>
> How long a period of time have you consistently exercised for? My WAG is that you haven’t stuck with an exercise program long enough to see benfits. (I’m basing this on nothing, it’s just a guess like I said) In my experience, exercise can make you feel awfulat first. It sometimes takes a month or two (or longer in some cases) to get used to the exercise and start feeling good about it.
> Otherwise, maybe you have some other energy limiting thing like a thyroid issue or Epstein-Barr (IANAD, just more wild ass speculation…).
I commuted by bicycle for several YEARS – five days a week, fifty weeks a year. I enjoyed the actual bicycling part, but was always dog-tired afterward, and it was generally all I could do to get through the day, then go home and collapse. My personal feeling is that someday they’ll figure out there’s some hormone or something that allows some to recover quickly and easily from exercise, while others have problems.
---
### Author:  [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)
#### Post date: [December 11, 2004, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/28 "2004-12-11T13:41:41Z")
> [@overlyverbose](#):
>
> Some people are actually allergic to exercise:
> [link](http://walking.about.com/cs/med/a/sensitchylegs.htm). Perhaps you have a problem similar to one of these?
>
> I heard the most common allergy is the exercise-induced rash - it’s caused by the rise in body temperature. You can also experience an allergic reaction to something you’ve consumed that’s actually triggered by exercise, which causes the rash, and sometimes anaphylactic shock.
Ok, wow. I’ve always said I was allergic to exercise - I didn’t think it was actually true. Looks like I’ve got some research to do. Thanks!
---
### Author:  [@oldwest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oldwest)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/29 "2015-05-04T01:37:09Z")
I’ve learned that when you experience an anomaly, when your body doesn’t react the way others’ bodies react, those others are constantly explaining what you should be doing or what you’re doing wrong, or both. I too learned years ago that, while I was working out with others and doing about the same thing they were doing, they came out of the exercise full of energy, and I came out drained for the rest of the day. I thought I was the only one in the world with that problem, until I happened to hear a co-worker say she had the same problem. I always thought I was the only person in the world for whom coffee is a really fast acting laxative, until, in 1991, I read an article in Time magazine about those people for whom coffee serves as a fast acting laxative. In my senior years, I’m supposed to be using a c-pap machine. Others who use c-paps tell me how much better they feel the morning after. The morning after I use mine, I’m just tired all day. The medical community knows that not everyone reacts to meds the same way, that’s why there are multiple meds for the same ailment. But the medical community can’t seem to wrap their heads around the fact that we react to other stimuli differently as well. So do your best to find what works for you, avoid those things that don’t work for you. Enjoy each day in the best way you can. As a for instance, I’ve learned I can get my caffeine in pill form. Walking is about the only exercise that works for me, so I park in the outer edges of the parking lots.
---
### Author:  [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/30 "2015-05-04T02:31:16Z")
> [@Jadis](#):
>
> Seeing as how I need so much sleep in general, exercising in the morning has always been anathema to me. All of my previous gym efforts up until now always revolved around going _after_ work. I was tired then, too.
>
> This time around, I’ve been going to the gym at 6am. Believe me when I say it doesn’t help to go in the morning. In a lot of ways, it’s probably worse, because I don’t want to get out of bed even on good, non-exercising days. Getting up at 6am is its own special little hell.
There are quite a few variables, but it could just be an individual thing, because my situation would account for several of these variables. I swim every morning, from 5:30 to 6:30–2 km, or about 1.25 miles. Furthermore, I don’t eat a banana before–I don’t eat anything, BUT I drink large mug of black coffee with no sugar, which makes a big difference. And I normally sleep four to five hours. I have to say, that right afterwards I usually feel great. It’s the best time of the day. (In the afternoon I usually have to sleep for about 20 minutes, if I really want to be alert, though.) However, occasionally I won’t feel good afterwards, and I can’t really figure out why. I’m thinking it might have something to do with diet. But I’ll say one thing: I’ve been able to turn this into such a habit that I actually feel bad when I don’t swim. (As for the “special little hell”? Well, I totally get that, but you know, once I get through it, the rest of the day is all down hill in comparison.)
I’m wondering, also, how do you swim? I see a lot of people swimming horribly.
---
### Author:  [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/31 "2015-05-04T06:36:41Z")
> [@Jadis](#):
>
> Oh…and I forgot to mention. **Bananas are** of the debbil and should be banned from this earth. Where’s the vomit smiley when you need one?
You misspelled _exercising is_…
---
### Author:  [@edwardcoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwardcoast)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/32 "2015-05-04T07:46:26Z")
> [@Jadis](#):
>
> You know, every time you see people talk about getting into an exercise routine, you invariably see them gush about how great and energized they feel. Am I the only person alive who feels like crap when they work out?
>
> Seriously…exercising doesn’t make me feel good. I mean, I know in my _head_ that it’s good for me, but physically, all it does is make me tired. I can feel proud of the fact that I made the effort, but other than that, there’s really no reward. Instead of feeling energized and fit and blah blah blah…all I feel is worn out. And hungry.
>
> Exercising doesn’t charge me up for the day, it makes me want to stuff my face and then take a nap.
>
> Am I alone here?
I don’t think he does a radio show any longer, but Bruce Williams mentioned that he hated exercise but he did it. He said he would rather clean out a septic tank with a straw than exercise but he did it.
I was delighted to hear him say that, because I hate exercise. And I have all the equipment and all that stuff too. I still hate it, but you know what, after hearing this guy admit he didn’t like it but he did it anyway, I finally started to work on figuring out what I hated so much about it.
Then I improved the exercise environment. I set up all the equipment in the basement with two fans. So they blow on me from two directions. I also got a big screen TV with a great sound system. And I DVR things and save the stuff I really like to watch only while I exercise. Then I looked into clothing and realized I didn’t have the most comfortable exercise clothing and got that. Yes, all this cost money, but I worked on trying to make it the best I could. Exercise isn’t about suffering, it’s about the fitness and my body doesn’t know my brain is distracted listening to music I love or a TV program I think is great.
Every time I talk to a doctor, every single freaking health concern comes back to lose weight and exercise. So there is no avoiding it.
So after a while of doing this, I become more condition to look forward to the exercise because I can to listen to music I love or watch a program I saved.
---
### Author:  [@edwardcoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwardcoast)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/33 "2015-05-04T07:47:41Z")
> [@Jadis](#):
>
> It’s not just around the time of my workout…I expect to be tired after I work out. It’s all of the _other_ time that I’m talking about. If I work out regularly, during all of the time in which I’m _not_ working out, I want to sleep (and eat). I’m tired literally all of the time. I would come home from work and go directly to bed if I could.
>
> Exercising simply does not make me feel better. Not one iota. Not before, after or during.
Sounds like you have some other issue. See your family doctor, maybe you need to have a sleep study done, for example.
---
### Author:  [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/34 "2015-05-04T08:44:35Z")
You folks may want to check the timestamps before replying to the OP.
---
### Author:  [@May\_20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/May_20)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/35 "2015-05-04T14:41:28Z")
I realize this is a zombie thread, but it’s so nice to know that I’m not the only one who doesn’t get that endorphin rush from exercising, who is utterly worn out because of working out.
I am not alone. 😃
---
### Author:  [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/36 "2015-05-04T16:52:27Z")
I’ve never felt good after exercising. I’ve never felt healthier, more energetic, or happier after extended periods (weeks, months) of regular exercise every day.
In fact, ever since the third grade, heat has given me bad headaches, and that includes the heat induced by exercise.
So, I exercise, because I want my daughters to have their dad in their lives for as long as possible. But every time I step on that treadmill, I just accept that I’m going to have pain throbbing in the back of my head for most of the day until I can kill it with too much Excedrin, after which point I’ll have caffeine jitters and, weirdly, dry eyes until bedtime.
It’s a bit of an anti-motivator, to be honest.
---
### Author:  [@Lorene89095](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lorene89095)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/37 "2015-05-04T16:55:09Z")
Try Alieve.
---
### Author:  [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/38 "2015-05-04T17:03:29Z")
I didn’t see anywhere that you mention your age but I’ll just throw my anecdotal evidence that working out at the age of 50 truly sucks. I try to go to crossfit three times a week and, basically, I’m sore and tired all the time. Not to mention that any gains in muscle mass and/or strength come agonizingly slowly. So, if you are still young, chin up because it never gets any better.
---
### Author:  [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/39 "2015-05-04T17:42:57Z")
I need to be in this thread, too. I exercise daily and it never makes me feel good. Every day I feel tired, and I do get enough sleep and I know I eat very well - lots of veggies and fruit and enough protein.
I just hate exercise. I wish I could get that rush other people do. Swimming actually makes me feel great but the only pool around here is the Y and it’s not very convenient.
---
### Author:  [@JcWoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JcWoman)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2015, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743/40 "2015-05-04T20:12:02Z")
I’m an exercise hater, too. In my case, I have arthritis, systemically, and exercise tends to make me ache all over. Not muscle ache, either, it’s in my bones.
That and the fact that I find repetitive exercise to be dull as mud, no matter what music, book or tv show I try to distract myself with. I have on rare occasion enjoyed it when an exercise class got turned into an unexpected game. For example I was doing water aerobics a few years ago and when the Olympics were on the teacher made us do our own water-based olympics in one class session. I adored it. But was so sore and tired that I had to skip the next session two days later. I need to work up my intensity gradually to avoid pain, and I need fun and games for motivation, but I’ve never managed to win the jackpot on both two classes in a row.
[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743.md?page=1)
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-exercising-make-me-feel-like-crap/278743.md?page=3)