Aerobic Exercise/Fitness News

A new study has revealed that aerobic exercise can lead to contentment.

A team of researchers from the University of Berlin found that the 'natural high' that is associated with regular exercise can dampen the need for other reward - such as money.

Volunteers were split into two groups. Members of the first group were sedentary and those within the second group were trained endurance athletes. All volunteers were asked to complete 30 minutes of 'rigorous exercise' on a treadmill, or the same amount of time doing 'placebo exercise' such as stretching.

Afterwards, all volunteers played a money-based game where they had to push buttons as quick as they could top avoid losing Euros.

The results showed that all volunteers - whether they were used to exercise or not - had less desire to win money. It is thought that the results were affected by levels of the chemical dopamine, which is released in the body during bouts of exercise.

The results follow other recent studies that found women responded in a different way to images of food after exercise. Lead author of the study, Professor James LeCheminant, from Brigham Young University, told news.byu.edu: "This study provides evidence that exercise not only affects energy output, but it also may affect how people respond to food cues." http://www.fitnessfirst.co.uk/learn-about-fitness/regular-exercise/exercise-contentment/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNECyt6Bo0A