How To Train Your Brain To Actually Enjoy Exercise, According To Science
Truth: They woke up like this. Some people really are more inclined to find joy in exercise. But! You can rewire your brain to join that “love it” group, research shows.
When experts measured the electrical connectivity in the brains of people who are recreationally active, they found that those who perceive themselves as being highly tolerant of physical effort had greater levels of “remembered pleasure” afterward, according to the new study by Florida International University. Meanwhile, those who said they were not as tolerant had a certain amount of “anticipatory dread,” or negative feelings, before the work even started.
The good news is that you can teach yourself to be more accepting, physically and mentally, of movement—which will help you feel excited about exercise in general and crave it more often. By trying some (or all!) of these tactics, you’ll likely notice benefits immediately, says study lead Marcelo Bigliassi, PhD. To extend the effect, keep efforts ongoing, so subtle changes compound over time. Onward!
Meet the experts: Marcelo Bigliassi, PhD, is an assistant professor of neuroscience and psychophysiology at Florida International University. Diogo Teixeira, PhD, is a professor on the physical education and sport faculty at Lusófona University in Lisbon, Portugal.
1. Add appeal to the flavor of exercise you already like.
Let’s say you don’t mind weight lifting but definitely don’t have the can’t-wait feels leading up to a workout. You can create artificial motivation and enjoyment by listening to music or a podcast while you sweat, using virtual reality, or even just engaging in positive self-talk, Bigliassi says. Or perhaps lifting with a group or a friend is the missing ingredient for you. “You’re creating outside signals that can help you push a little bit harder and a little bit faster.” The goal is to foster positive experiences with your sweat sessions. Gradually, the emotion will become second nature without these external cues.
Not sure where to start with finding your best-match activity? Think back to your recent past, and even to your childhood, says Bigliassi. “There are usually clues.” For example, if you used to love swimming at your neighborhood pool, maybe that could translate to swimming laps at your local gym. Or perhaps you were a dancer at one point in your life. Taking a virtual or IRL dance fitness class could spark passion.
2. Challenge yourself *just* enough.
No matter what you’re doing, the activity needs to be tough enough that you’ll have a feeling of accomplishment that makes you want to repeat it. But it should also be within your capabilities, in order to protect your sense of self-efficacy (that is, your belief in your abilities), says Bigliassi. When people experience an exercise intensity that’s not aligned with their preference or tolerance, they exercise less in the future, research shows.
Take this thinking a step further: By choosing, say, a running pace you consider pleasurable (read: not all-out), you may find running more enjoyable—and more easily repeatable in the future. This “autonomy promotion” also applies to resistance training, says researcher Diogo Teixeira, PhD. So if resting longer between sets makes you feel better, do it. (It’ll create those positive associations in your brain.) “More is not always better, and a pleasurable activity will be more easily sustained over time,” Teixeira says.
Monitoring with a tracker can also allow you to see the work you’re putting in, which improves mindset around fitness and, therefore, happiness pertaining to exercise, found a study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.
3. Send your mind a motivational sign.
Humans are wired to save as much energy and store as much fat as possible. So, sometimes—and especially when exercise gets intense—you need to remind yourself why you’re going through this perceived insanity. “It’s difficult for some parts of our brain to make sense of exercise,” Bigliassi says.
For example, recalling that cardio is important for both heart health and cognitive function can act as a motivational signal. That helps you feel more positive in the moment and be more consistent with exercise down the road; you now associate the activity with purpose and appealing health outcomes. Surprisingly, negative thoughts can also act as positive signals (e.g., envisioning your energy and mood tanking from not moving that day can be incredibly powerful). Consider this your sign to go for a walk or gear up for a workout right about…now.
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