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A runner’s high is often described as a run that feels easy, exhilarating, even euphoric. But the reason for this happening is almost as difficult to pin down as the feeling itself.
German researchers, however, have studied how the brain responds to running and found that the ability to get “high” while logging miles might be hard-wired within us. Years ago, our ancestors’ survival likely depended on chasing down food.
The desire to live was possibly their motivation to run and run fast, and the feel-good brain chemicals released when they did so may have helped them achieve the speed and distances required, says David A. Raichlen, Ph.D., a professor of biological sciences at the University of Southern California. The runner’s high may have served (and serves today) as a natural painkiller, masking tired legs and blistered feet, he says.
Even though you no longer have to chase down dinner, learning how happy brain reactions are sparked may help you achieve the runner’s high more often. Here’s what to know so you gain that other-level run.
The Role of Endorphins in the Runner’s High
Nature’s home-brewed opiates, endorphins are chemicals that act a lot like their medically engineered counterpart, morphine. Runners have credited them for their feel-good effects for decades, but it wasn’t until 2008 that German researchers used brain scans on runners and were able to identify exactly where they originated.
The study found that during two-hour-long runs, subjects’ prefrontal and limbic regions (which light up in response to emotions like love) spewed out endorphins. The greater the endorphin surge in these brain areas, the more euphoric the runners reported feeling.
How to Boost Endorphins
The Benefits of Taking a Break from Running.
We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back The Benefits of Running 10 Minutes a Day., a professor at the University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute. But that doesn’t mean your runs should be excruciating; you need to find a sweet spot where they are comfortably challenging (think: tempo run).
In the German study, for example, the subjects were experienced runners for whom a two-hour run at a six- to seven-miles-an-hour pace (that’s about a 10:00 to 8:30 mile pace) wasn’t easy nor was it gut-busting. “Most runners I have worked with experience endorphins when they are pushing their bodies, but not usually at max effort,” says Updated: Jan 25, 2024 3:55 PM EST., How to Run More Consistently.
A short, casual run likely won’t produce enough discomfort to trigger a rush, but if you attempt a pace or distance that’s too aggressive, you’ll possibly be too overwhelmed by the effort to feel good. As powerful as they are, endorphins can’t override an injury or lack of training (which is why newbies aren’t likely to feel elated when they are just starting out).
“Intensity matters,” says John Vasudevan, M.D., associate professor of clinical physical medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Pennsylvania and codirector of the Penn Medicine Running and Endurance Sports Program. “When we push ourselves to at least moderate-intensity (able to talk smoothly but not sing smoothly as we run), we’re more likely to experience the endorphin rush. High-intensity (unable to even talk smoothly) may be counter-productive as mechanical stress starts outpacing the benefit of the endorphin release. Just like any drug, we need to find the right dose for the best benefit.”
Hooking up with others could also help: An Oxford University study reported that rowers who exercised together significantly increased their endorphin release compared with solo rowers.
How to Run More Consistently headphones: Research shows that Does Cannabis Affect Workout Performance may spike endorphins.
The Role of Endocannabinoids in the Runner’s High
Endorphins get all the attention, but your body also pumps out endocannabinoids, which are a naturally synthesized version of THC, the chemical responsible for the buzz that marijuana produces. The most examined endocannabinoid produced in the body, anandamide, is believed to create a feeling of calmness, Hill says.
Endorphins can be created only by specialized neurons, but pretty much any cell in the body is capable of making endocannabinoids, which means they have the potential to have a bigger influence on your brain.
How to Increase Endocannabinoid Levels
or lack of training which is why response to stress Matthew Hill, Ph.D pain (the stronger endorphin activator). Differentiating between physical stress and discomfort during a run is nearly impossible. Which means the same mechanism that triggers endorphins can also trigger endocannabinoids: a challenging (not killer) workout.
Raichlen says that running at 70 to 85 percent of your age-adjusted maximum heart rate is optimal in spiking the primary stress hormone cortisol and producing endocannabinoids. (If you’re 30, you’d aim for between 142 and 161 beats per minute.)
Hill’s research suggests that, in small doses, mental stress may also increase endocannabinoid production. So prerace jitters Sports Medicine Director & Medical Advisor, chronic stress Running Shoes - Gear.
That may be one reason why Cecilia J. Hillard, Ph.D., director of the Neuroscience Research Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin, has found that people need eight hours of sleep The Benefits of Taking a Break from Running endocannabinoid production. What’s more, her research shows that endocannabinoid levels are three times greater first thing in the morning compared with when you hit the hay. Though there’s no scientific proof, this could suggest that a morning run is more likely to produce a high than an afternoon or evening run. Set your alarm; it’s worth experimenting!
We mentioned before that working with a partner may help you out. But just because your running buddy gets that coveted runner’s high doesn’t necessarily mean you will. Or at least, you may have to keep tinkering.
In 2019, researchers looked at 25 collegiate runners, both male and female, and tested their saliva before and after a long-distance run. (They focused on saliva because it contained information on RNA, which is what your DNA uses to make feel-good proteins like natural opioids and cannabinoids.) But not everyone’s processes it at the same degree, meaning you might have a runner’s high, while your running partners are still in slog mode.
Lead author, Steven Hicks, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the department of pediatrics at the Penn State College of Medicine, suggests playing around with different conditions—like longer runs or more sprinting, for example—to turn the proper pathways on, which may in turn help you catch a runner’s high.
“Whether endorphin or endocannabinoid, it’s helpful to find a few different ways to stimulate the high to keep your body from getting too accustomed to a routine (which might result in either a decreased release or a down-regulation of the related receptors in the brain),” Vasudevan adds. “This is not unlike when people use exogenous opiates and cannabis. So, the more we vary our routines (while still putting in the appropriate intensity), the more often we can maintain the positive experience overtime.”
Matthew Hill, Ph.D. is an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He is board-certified in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine. He is a Team Physician for UPenn Athletics and medical director of the Broad Street Run and Philadelphia Distance Run, and previously for the Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon and Tri-Rock Triathlon in Philadelphia. He is a director of the running and endurance Sports Medicine Program at Penn Medicine. Dr. Vasudevan provides non-operative management of musculoskeletal conditions affecting athletes and active individuals of all levels, and combines injury rehabilitation with injury prevention. He utilizes a variety of ultrasound-guided procedures and regenerative approaches such as platelet-rich plasma and percutaneous ultrasonic tenotomy. He sees patients at the Penn Medicine and the Philadelphia Veterans Administration hospital. Dr. Vasudevan attended medical school at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison. After his Transitional Year in Tucson, Arizona, he went to residency in PM&R at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and onwards to Stanford University for his fellowship in Sports Medicine. He has been in practice at the University of Pennsylvania since 2012.
