Your Brain Wants to Go For a Run
Your brain wants to go for a run.
By now, we’ve all read Born to Run and maybe some of the science behind the assertions in McDougall book.
Generally, it turns out we humans have many physiological features indicating that running (as apposed to walking or sitting in an office chair) was a significant driver in our evolutionary past.
But now that we no longer benefit from our ability to hunt down the occasional antelope, why do we still like to run? (I’ll assume that since you are reading this, you do like to run.)
It looks like you (assuming you are a human being) have a brain that is wired for running.
Remember all that talk of the “runner’s high” we used to hear back in the day? You know how difficult it can be to rest or take time off when you are injured?
It turns out there really are brain chemicals that drive you to lace up and get out there. And runners really do behave a bit like addicts because of this.
Read about it on NPR’s Health Blog–then go for a run.