The Joy of Movement: How exercise helps us find happiness, hope, connection, and courage

But Raichlen had in mind another candidate, a class of brain chemicals called endocannabinoids. These are the same chemicals mimicked by cannabis, or marijuana. Endocannabinoids alleviate pain and boost mood, which fit Raichlen’s requirements for rewarding physical labor.

drug. Exercise causes the brain to release many of the same neurochemicals as addictive substances, including dopamine, noradrenaline, endocannabinoids, and endorphins. With repeat exposure, running also flips the molecular switch of addiction. In laboratory studies with rats, running ten kilometers a day for one month had an effect on dopaminergic

numerous studies have shown that for regular exercisers, missing a single workout can lead to anxiety and irritability. Three days without exercise induces symptoms of depression, and one week of abstinence can produce severe mood disturbances and insomnia.

The human capacity for empathy is rooted in the mirror neuron system and its ability to observe and interpret the physical actions of others. Your body responds sympathetically to another person’s movement because humans instinctively try to understand one another.

rumination. Might there also be a very different default mode that reveals itself when we are in nature? Alexandra Rosati, a psychologist who studies the evolutionary origins of the human mind, points out that two pressures shaped the development of the human brain. The first was our need to cooperate in small groups. This pressure gave rise to soc

This was something of a revelation—how much the individual psychological benefits of physical activity rely on our social nature. How so much of the joy of movement is actually the joy of connection.

Cognitive scientist Mark Changizi uses the word nature-harnessing to describe any cultural invention that can “harness evolutionarily ancient brain mechanisms for a new purpose.”

During physical activity, muscles secrete hormones into your bloodstream that make your brain more resilient to stress. Scientists call them “hope molecules.” Looking at the evidence, it’s hard not to conclude that our entire physiology was engineered to reward us for moving.

Athletic events that acknowledge these collective problems are opportunities to experience one of the antidotes to despair, we-agency. When we take our part in these collective endeavors, the physical movement uplifts us and the community inspires us.

When you are absorbed in your natural surroundings, the brain shifts into a state called soft fascination. It is a state of heightened present-moment awareness.