We don’t need another reason to exercise. We already know it’s necessary for life, with endless mental and physical health benefits. With massive social trends toward healthy living from wellness events and zero alcohol club experiences dominating the now, it’s hard to escape the thought that we are supposed to embrace exercise. But not everyone loves it the way the bouncy content creator that interrupts our feed does. In fact, some of us hate it. And science says there’s a reason for that.
Not Everyone Gets the Same Dose of Dopamine
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain that plays a role as the “reward center” in functions like motivation, mood, attention, memory, movement, and more. Exercise and movement increase dopamine release and the brain’s responsiveness, which signals pleasure and improved mood. This positive feedback loop of exercise to improve mood creates the desire to exercise more. However, genetic variations in the dopamine reward system can influence how much “reward” a person gets from exercise, with some experiencing far more than others. While some brains don’t deliver as much dopamine from working out, others have another scientific reason, an underlying condition known as exercise intolerance, which needs to be addressed by a healthcare provider.
Exercise Intolerance
Exercise intolerance is characterized by the inability to perform physical activity at the expected level and can lead to severe fatigue, pain, and discomfort after minimal exertion. It’s not a disease but a symptom that can arise from underlying conditions, diagnosed or undiagnosed, that affect the neuromuscular, cardiovascular, pulmonary, or metabolic systems.
“Exercise intolerance is the inability to do things that you could have done prior to having an event,” Dr. Denzil Seedial, a critical care physician and pulmonologist, explains. For example, a major accident, certain illnesses, COVID-19, or a respiratory tract infection would be considered an event. “It’s any change from baseline.”
Diagnosing the root cause of exercise intolerance requires more investigation if no events or obvious life changes can be identified.
“If you continue to be short of breath, it’s usually cardiac or pulmonary related. If after slowly beginning to exercise a patient reports they’re finding themself more short of breath than the average person, and we don’t think it’s from deconditioning, then further diagnostic testing like a chest x-ray, a pulmonary function test, or a cardiopulmonary exercise stress test are used to look for things like asthma, exercise induced asthma, or COPD,” adds Dr. Seedial.
Why Failure Feels So Heavy
Our minds undoubtedly play a major role in everything we do, including finding the motivation to do things we want to do and the relationship between how we accept the success or failure of personal goals. Science proves that mindset is more than just willpower; it’s also rooted in biology. If we set unrealistic exercise goals and subsequently can’t meet those goals, we may feel an unhealthy sense of failure. Failure, embarrassment, and disappointment can feel physically jarring because they impact areas in our brain called the amygdala and insula. The feeling of failure also cuts dopamine off, which can lower motivation and reinforce negative associations. Employing the correct support to set safe, realistic exercise goals is important so we don’t create a negative experience and impact the likelihood of continuing.
Fitness trends may come and go, but exercise’s medical benefits are permanent. If you’ve ever felt like you hated exercise, there may be a scientific reason, and you’re certainly not alone. Enlist the help of your medical provider if you suspect exercise intolerance. Starting small, setting realistic goals, focusing on the wins, and finding an exercise program that interests you all improve the chances that you trade hate for healthy habits.
