And Everybody's High

(With apologies to John Denver, may he RIP).

The old "runner's high" expression has been around for eons--probably invented by our cave ancestors when they had to sprint away from a charging beastie, and survived to tell the tale (who wouldn't feel glorious after escaping near death by teeth?). I've read countless articles, blogs, posts, and entered countless discussions with other athletes trying to determine if this alleged thing exists. If so, does everyone have it? Can anyone achieve it? Can you bottle and sell it and get an IPO for it?

I also note, with some humor, that no one ever talks about a biker's high or a swimmer's high or even a rower's high. It seems odd that running would have a stranglehold on endorphin induced euphoria.

Anyway. Countless runners swear that this runner's high does exist. Many swear it does not exist, or at least not for them. Some think it might happen, and maybe they have experienced it, or maybe it was just the effects of last night's beerfest. Opinions differ. Mileage varies.

I can tell you this: I think this thing does exist, and it does happen, but not all the time and not in any particular circumstance. I've experienced what I think it might be, at least for me.

My personal "runner's high" happens about once or twice a month. It usually is on longer runs over 3 miles, and almost always when I'm tired and wishing I was done and drinking the kind of drink that has an umbrella stuck in it. It's never when I am struggling up a hill or doing an interval or anything else difficult. It's usually on the flat, running easy, when I don't have to think about anything but my feet falling one in front of the other.

Suddenly everything kind of goes into slow mo in my head--my breathing gets easy, my rhythm gets even, my feet feel like they are floating, and nothing hurts --or if it does hurt, I notice it, but it doesn't seem to bother me--I feel connected with the road and the trees and the sky and my mind goes into a kind of zen zone where I'm really not thinking of anything, although when this happens my mind immediately says, "look! it's happening!" This feeling lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes-no longer than that. Then it's like all the noise and light comes back into the picture and I feel my pain and effort come crashing into me once again.

I've read where this feeling is probably caused by the body's natural response to hard exertion--exercise endorphins--and I've also read this is the body's response to being tired and abused by its owner--going into a protective kind of semi-shock--and I've also read that it's neither of those, but just a natural response to a rhymthic motion like running (which 'splains why it doesn't happen so much in biking because you are usually changing gears or watching for cars or steering). I have indeed sort of felt it in biking when I'm on a long flat straightaway, but it doesn't really come out in biking for me too much. I've not exactly felt it in swimming--I have had moments when I have felt light and easy in the water, but it's so much effort to work on my form and breathing that my body apparently really doesn't want to find any kind of trance mode and therefore maybe drown in the process.

I've talked to runners who say this feeling for them can last for miles--which would be awesome if that ever happened to me. I've talked to runners who have never felt it.

This is not the same feeling as you get post workout, which is a different kind of groovy. This is smack in the middle of the angst.

If we could only bottle this stuff and sell it at Costco....

Anyone else with this experience, would love to collect stories about it.

Tonight's a 90 minute easy bike. It's only going to be 99 out there with a 30 mph hot wind. I so looooove Texas in the summer!