The Cheapest Way to Get High

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(Please excuse that click-baitiest of titles. I couldn't help myself.)

It's a cold and blustery Wednesday morning. I'm not a fan of cold and a bit worried about the freezing rain forecast for my commute home. I'm writing this post on a small plugged into a narrow space between a stack of tasks I don't really want to do. 

I'm sitting at my desk smiling my face off.

Why?

Endorphins, my friend. Endorphins and dopamine!

Was I doing drugs? 

Hell no. I will admit I feel a tiny bit high and have for the past two days. 

How did I achieve this state of mild nirvana?

I exercised. 

That's it. A half weight training circuit. Thirty minutes of fun in exchange for days of mood stability. It's almost as if people weren't designed to be sedentary. 

What else has happened since my work out session? Let's see... I'm clearheaded and focused and I get shit done. Partly that's because I have clarity and I can remember what to do. 

It's in the realm of the plausible that there are a lot of folks out there taking meds that come with side effects and possible long term consequences like liver damage that they don't need to take. [People with serious mood disorders like bipolar or nonresponsive depression, keep taking the pills. Stay alive!] But for the rest of us, who have mild symptoms or just a general sense of malaise brought on by corporate society, running shoes are better than meds. There's an endless variety of activities out there from swimming to skiing, basketball to weight training. There's a well-documented connection between raising your heart rate and raising your mood. Best of all, it's free. 

Even the dwellers of the tiniest homes can find the space to do some burpees and crunches. (If you can't do it indoors, go outside. Common sense, yo!)

I've done experiments on myself on days when I was trailing a thick cloud of unfounded negativity. I dragged myself out of the office to a deserted hallway and did 25 burpees. I did not enjoy the burpees because really no one likes burpees. I did enjoy the boost my mood got within minutes of finishing them. 

That's the important bit. It's medicine without all the icky swallowing of mystery substances. 

Give it a go. If it works for me, it'll work for you. 

REPUTABLE SOURCES:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/exercise-and-stress/art-20044469
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/exercising-to-relax
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7605827/