Endorphins and Myokines: A New Discovery

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Movement can trigger the release of chemicals that make us feel better. Endorphins are more likely to give you a euphoria, but they also work with endocannabinoids, endopamine, and adrenaline to make you feel amazing. But that endorphin rush, from exercise, you're most likely to get it when you're moving to music,. When you move in synchrony with other people, and when you do things that are really hard.

Pay a visit to your local gym, observe the grimacing patrons as they pound the treadmill or march in place on the StairMaster, and you might conclude that exercise is no fun. But it doesn’t have to be that way, according to Kelly McGonigal, who lectures at Stanford, teaches dance classes, and wrote “The Joy of Movement: How Exercise Helps Us Find Happiness, Hope, Connection, and Courage.” Today, she explains how exercise — of all kinds and in all doses — can strengthen your mind, elevate your mood, and deepen your social connections.