Women’s Health UK – September 2019

A racing

mind

(^) We hear you. On the mornings when you’d
sell a family member to stay in bed instead of
kitting up, it’s probably the promise of feeling
so damn good afterwards that gets you out the
door. For starters, yes, endorphins are real.
‘Endorphins work in tandem with serotonin
and noradrenaline – two other feel-good
neurotransmitters – to give you that high,’
says sports psychologist Dr Kip Matthews.
But while these brain chemicals can take
a lot of credit for your post-gym euphoria, a
significant endorphin boost is actually part of
your body’s pain response. One study showed
that although an hour’s moderate intensity
exercise and five rounds of HIIT both induced
feelings of euphoria, only the high-stress
HIIT actually led to a large endorphin release.
There’s no need to smash yourself though.
‘The runner’s high is attributable mainly
to serotonin and noradrenaline, and you
can start to feel their effects after 30 to
45 minutes,’ says Dr Matthews. Throw in
the psychological benefits to exercising
(distraction, greater self-belief ), and it’s
no surprise that studies consistently show
workout-induced improvement in anxiety,
stress and depression. So what’s the magic
number? A recent study published in The
Lancet found that 45 minutes of physical
exercise, as varied as running, skiing and
housework (really putting your back into
it), three to five times a week provided the
greatest mental health benefits, while
working out for more than three hours a day
was actually associated with poorer mental
health. Everything in moderation, yeah?
How long do
I need to work
out to feel the
mental health
benefits?
Women’s Health
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14 | SEPTEMBER 2019