According to them, Dopamine is a neurotransmitter present in regions of the brain that regulate movement, emotion, motivation, and the feeling of pleasure. It is what gets us hooked on a lot of things. Like cigarettes, or shopping or drugs. Since it controls pleasure, it tells your brain what you enjoy then makes you go after it, even if its bad for you.
I got all this from reading O's Big B ook of Happiness by the way. A collection of articles from Oprah's magazines. I was especially interested in this one story about someone who can't exercise. Not because she's physically unable to. But she could never get herself to do it. There is always one excuse after another.
A therapist told her to associate exercise with something pleasurable or rewarding so that the dopamine in her brain will get going and she'll learn to like exercising. So there were little tricks like buying yourself something you really want if you get through a week of regular exercise.
I am really glad I don't have to go that far. Sure, I had difficulty getting off my lazy ass, but after a while I mustered enough energy to get going. It helped that my friends were enrolling in Pilates and Kickboxing and I went along for ride.
And now I'm starting to enjoy it. Not just because my friends say that they are seeing results already. Telling me that I'm thinner now and beginning to lose a bit of belly flab. I didn't have to make deals with myself to get me to stick to my gym classes.
The thought of doing something good for my health and my appearance is enough motivation. That and the thought of myself strutting in a colorful bikini in some exotic beach. Not a pretty picture now, but as long as my dopamine wants me to exercise, it'll soon be.
No comments:
Post a Comment